Chapter Two

The popular girls all gave squeals of laughter as I dropped to my hands and knees in front of April. I heard groans from the rest of the students, and dimly heard Jeff say; "Aw, dude! Don't do it man!"

I refused to let myself feel humiliated. This was April's twisted sense of payback. I was protecting Mitzy from her rage and possible magical repercussions. April was a powerful witch and when in a fury, Witches had been known to wreak havoc on those less powerful. If I could become her target, even for one day, it could spare lives.

I gave her patent leather heels a lick. I knew she wanted me to feel humiliated.

I refused to give her what she wanted.

"Good Doggy!" she said, patting my head. "Now take my backpack and help me get to class."

I got up and swung her Saint Laurent white backpack onto my shoulder, along with my backpack that I'd had since I'd been in seventh grade. We didn't have a lot of money, especially for three thousand dollar backpacks.

"Good Dog!" A couple of her entourage said.

"April, can he carry -my- backpack too?" one of the girl's said.

April paused, considering. "Yes. Fool, take all of my friend's backpacks too!"

I rolled my eyes but swung three onto my back. Two more backpacks had piled up at my feet. "I can't take those," I said.

"What do you mean?" April said, batting her extended lashes at me.

"I can't carry them!" I said. "I have yours, mine, Jenni's, Stephanie's, and Charlotte's. I can't take any more."

"Leave your backpack here, then!" she said.

"But I--" I saw her eyes fade to black, and I shook my head, allowing my backpack to slide back down to the ground. I shouldered the three I had then, picked up the other two in my hands, and followed April into the building.

The backpacks were heavy and kept trying to slide off my shoulders which made me stumble as I tried to keep up with her.

"Keep up with me, Fool!" she yelled, as I increased my speed to the laughter and giggles of the girls surrounding me.

The other students all looked at me as I stumbled through the hallways. Some had snide looks on their faces, and others looked concerned or frowned. Mitzy had picked up my backpack and followed a few paces behind. When we got to her first period class, which was home-economics, April paused as I handed all her friends their backpacks and they gave me vicious grins and walked inside.

"Be back exactly when the bell rings, Fool!" she said, as I held her backpack up to her.

"Yeah," I said in response.

"You will address me as Mistress, is that clear, Fool?"

I shook my head, rolling my eyes.

"I expect to hear 'Yes, Mistress!'"

I grit my teeth. "Look, I carried your stupid bags to your stupid class. I'll be back when the bell rings." I started to walk off.

Bonds of energy seized me in a vice-grip. I was lifted up onto my toes, and turned to confront April. "You will respond by saying 'Yes, Mistress!'"

I grit my teeth, clamping my mouth shut. If this went on too long, eventually--

"What's going on here?" a deep male voice said from behind me.

Mr. Jenkins, my science teacher, glanced up at me. "That you, Atkins?"

"She--" but something stuffed my throat, and I couldn't speak.

"Seth was helping get to class and put his hand on my butt!" April said.

Mr. Jenkins frowned. "That true, Atkins?"

I tried to shake my head, but something forced it up and down.

"Look, I don't know what's going on here, but work it out and fast. It's time for class to start."

Gee, thanks for the help. I thought.

"If Seth will apologize, I'll let it go, this time," April said.

I sighed. "I apologize."

The bonds released me, and I could move again.

"See me in my office after school today, Atkins."

"Yes, Sir."

Mr. Jenkins nodded, then walked away.

The halls had emptied by this point, and I knew if I didn't get to class fast, I was going to be late. "Yes, Mistress!" I hissed out and put as much venom as I could into the words.

April nodded and looked a bit sad at me. "You hate me."

"Of course I do!" I said, walking away from her. "What did you expect?"

I took off, hoping to get to class on time. Distantly, I heard April open the door.

"He hates me now."

I shook my head and sprinted to my classroom.

Chapter Three

I made it to my Advanced Placement United States History class just as the tardy bell rang. Miss Minnick, my teacher, followed me with her eyes as she hovered above her cushion at the front of the room. Miss Minnick was an infernal, and she had tiny demon horns above her eyebrows, and a wispy angular tail. Her class always smelled faintly of brimstone.

"What do we say about being on time to class, children?"

I winced.

The class recited: "To be early is to be on time. To be on time is to be late. To be late is to write an essay!"

"Hmm, which essay shall we have you write..." Miss Minnick went to her 'special hat' where she had writing essay prompts.

I really didn't have time today to write an essay, not with being April's fool.

"I wasn't late! I came in before--"

"Class?" Miss Minnick said.

"To be early is to be on time. To be on time is to be late. To be late is to write an essay!"

"Dude, just take your punishment and chill out," Franklin Dell said. He and I were study partners in APUSH.

I sighed as Miss Minnick theatrically shuffled the slips in her hat. "Miss Contreras, would you be so kind?"

Anita Contreras snickered, put her hand into the slips, and drew one out.

"Analyze the causes and consequences of the Civil War."

I groaned, letting my head slump to the table.

Usually, I enjoyed APUSH, but today I was angry at the events before school. Miss Minnick began delivering her lecture on Progressivism and the Rise of American Power.

April and I had known each other since the fifth grade. Back then, she was just a funny, spunky girl that I used to play with at recess. I remembered waiting for her on the monkey bars, and she'd come running out from class and clonk me on the head with her hairbrush. "Hey stupid," she'd say.

I'd never been 'boyfriend' material until finally, as freshman, I confessed I'd had a long-standing crush on her. She laughed at first; she'd been dating the quarterback on the freshman football team, then when he treated her like shit, she and I found each other.

It was the kind of first love fumbling, tumbling, and first kisses that we remember our whole lives. At first, things were really good, and I think I was happy for the first, and maybe the only time in my life. I walked her to school, we'd spend every lunch hour together, and generally, every waking moment if I wasn't in school, doing homework, or playing baseball, it was with her.

Then her dad sold his company for big money, and they moved away. However, April threw a fit and forced her dad to allow her to remain at High Valley High with her friends. She started coming into her power around that point, the same time she entered womanhood, and she'd undergone a rather dramatic transformation.

Her mother was Desdemonia, the most powerful magic user in High Valley. She wasn't a good or bad witch; she was a chaos user who used magic when and if things aligned in their own interests. When April came into her power, she had to go through her initiation...and come out the other side as a snide, bitchy, feral witch who used magic on others in mean ways. She said it was her geas, but all I know is the spunky brown-haired girl-next-door was replaced by this gothic, black-tressed bitch we all knew and loved now.

Our relationship fell apart when she put a collar on me in wolf-form one month. That's another story for another time.

Anyway, now she was the terror of the school. She had her bitchy friends who did bitchy things to people bitchily. And I'd gone from being infatuated with her to dreading the sight of her.

"Mr. Atkins," Miss Minnick said, reminding me abruptly that I'd spaced out. "Care to chime in on our discussion?"

I blinked and looked around. All eyes were on me, and Anita even snickered. "Um, sorry, can you repeat the question?"

In a testy voice, Miss Minnick said: "What were the key goals of the Progressive Movement, and how did they try to achieve those goals?"

My brain quickly reviewed everything I knew about the Progressive Movement. "The key goals of the Progressive movement included improving social and economic conditions for all Americans, reducing corruption and inefficiency in government, and expanding democracy and citizen participation?"

She smiled at me. "Well done."

I liked answering questions correctly. It gave me a little thrill each time I did. "Thank you."

"Please see me after class."

The little thrill went away. After class? That would be a disaster since I needed to sprint to April's class to carry her books to the next class! Panic filled me, and my pulse started racing. What would she do?

Did I care what she would do? If she used magic on me, I'd call my dad. As a member of the Council of Magic in High Valley, he wanted to know when power was being abused, and since April was starting to lean toward the dark side of Magic, he'd want to know.

I took a breath and calmed my pulse. In moments of extreme anxiety, my curse could manifest, and I didn't want that to happen, not here, not in class, not in front of all my friends...

I calmed down a bit, and class resumed as normal.

------------------

If you enjoyed this please consider joining my patreon at https://patreon.com/rainemonday

“What’s going on, Seth?” Miss Minnick always called me by my last name in front of the other students, but called me by my first name in private. She was a nice lady, a good teacher, and an awesome mentor.

“I’m April’s Fool,” I said. “In fact, she’s probably looking for me right —“

“Oh, pffft. That girl needs to be put in her place.” Miss Minnick collected the blue-books stacked on her desks. She was the only teacher who still used blue-books for our exams in this age of tablets and smart-devices.

“I don’t think I’m the one to do it, Miss Minnick.”

“You’re stronger than you think, Seth. Never forget that.” She made a sweeping motion with her hands. A breath of brimstone filled the room, and all the blue-books flipped open and started correcting themselves in blood red ink. “Now, off with you, so you can attend to the game.”

I nodded and sprinted away.

April stood in the hallway in front of her class, tapping her heel and glancing at her phone.

“About time, fool,” she said. “Carry my backpack.”

I was a little shocked she wasn’t more irate. I shouldered her backpack and followed her through the hallway. She texted constantly on her phone the entire time. Students made way for her as she stalked through the hallways, her curly black hair bouncing on her shoulders.

“I miss the way your hair used to look,” I said.

She glanced back at me, her azure eyes perfectly made up with heavy dark eyeliner and mascara.

“You wore less makeup then too.”

“I was a child, stupid.”

“I know somewhere under all that makeup and hair product, the April I loved still lurks. Why can’t you just admit you won and let me go? We don’t have to play this stupid game.”

She stopped, and I realized we were in the quadrangle between wings of the building. I noticed there was a gathering of other students, including her stupid clique of the popular girls.

She moved into her group, then turned to regard me with an icy glare.

I knew this was going to be trouble.

“Fool!” she screamed out. “You were late picking me up!”

I glared at her in return, clenching my jaw. I felt my pulse racing again, and the change wanting to sweep over me. Not the time or place, Seth.

The danger of angering a were like me was control. If I lost control of my temper, I was a little like the Hulk—I had no ability to restrain myself or my inner instincts. With this many people gathered around in this small of an area—

It would be a bloodbath.

“Ooh, he’s getting angry,” Stephanie said. She ran a finger over my bicep.

“Don’t touch me,” I said and was a little surprised at how inhuman it sounded.

My true nature with the full of the moon was over a week ago, but shreds of my inhumanity still lingered. Most people don’t realize that weres must maintain a facade of control at all times. By giving into my inner nature could spell disaster of all kinds — to those around me, and to myself. Weres going feral and being stuck in the feral state were definitely not unknown, though it had been a long time since High Valley had a feral were.

You are the song in your mind. Live through your song. My father’s voice during our training rang in my ears, and I calmed myself.

April was a child playing a child’s games in front of children.

“It’s okay,” Mitzy whispered somewhere beside me. “You’re okay.”

I nodded.

“As punishment,” April placed a perfectly sculpted fingernail on her chin, tapping softly.

Dark magic swept up from the ground, granular and black. It hissed in the confines of the quad. I heard a few gasps as people realized April was wielding magic.

April allowed it to roil over her arms, her eyes fading to inky darkness.

“You said you liked my hair,” she said in a soft voice that everyone in the area could hear.

I felt a tingling along my limbs that swept up my body and centered on my scalp. I closed my eyes. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling, not at all. It felt—good but I didn’t want to let on to that fact. It swept over me, surrounding me, through me and then it was over and I was left panting from the pleasure of it. It took every force of will in my body to make sure my tongue didn’t loll out of my mouth and I needed to adjust my pants.

The area exploded in glee.

The popular girls all screamed, laughing, as Mitzy turned me around to face her.

“It’s okay, Seth, I’m here. Just look at me.”

“What?” I said. “What did she do?”

“Now!” April said. “Heel, Fool!” she pointed at her side, and I shook my head—

And felt something move. “What the—“

Looking to the left and right, I saw dark curls, the same corkscrew curls that April wore, to my left and right. I had a heightened sense of smell as a were, and the fragrance of my hair swept over me, licorice with a bit of rose petals.

“What the hell did you do to me?” I yelled, pulling at the hair somehow stuck on my head.

“Oh, don’t be a baby,” April said. “Heel.”

“We can fix it later, dude,” Jeff called out from beside me. “I got hair clippers at home.”

I shook my head, feeling the long locks dance around my shoulders and down my back.

Jenni, Stephanie, and Charlotte walked alongside her, and I walked a few paces back, clenching my jaw but not hating the fragrance of my new hair. I’d never give her the satisfaction that I liked the smell. She intended it to demean and degrade me, but I clenched my jaw defiantly and didn’t allow myself to even look at the other students who pointed and laughed in my direction.

You are the song in your mind. A symphony of instruments in perfect harmony with the world around you.

We made it to her classroom, and the other girls went in. I handed April her bag.

She ran her fingers through my springy curls, arranging them carefully, smiling.

“Does this make you happy?” I said, looking at her with my jaw clenched tightly.

She touched my cheek then, where the muscles of my jaw worked in anger and frustration. Her hand was soft and warm.

“No,” she said in a quiet voice.

Something about that made me feel even more humiliated than a few moments ago.

“Then why did you do it?” I said.

She looked at me, her azure eyes soulful and large. “I had to.”

I didn’t have an answer to that. She regarded me for another moment. “Be on time, stupid.”

I nodded. “Yes, Mistress.”

She winced at that, closing her eyes, then went into her classroom.

My next class was Differential Equations with Mr. Stewart. The bell rang as I plopped down in my seat, wincing as my long locks caught on the back of the wooden chair.

“Something to tell us today, Mr. Atkins?” Mr. Stewart said, glancing over his spectacles. Stewart was a norm, with no magic, and no supernatural abilities. He made up for the lack of magic in other ways..

“Uh…April Fools?”

He shook his head, then began to call the roll.

Someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around and saw Mitzi’s concerned face. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” I said.

“I’m so sorry, Seth.”

“Hey, no worries.” I turned around as Stewart launched into his lesson on Control Theory and how it could be used to control the flow of magical energy in a system.

I loved, loved, loved Math as it related to magic. Even though I couldn’t use or manipulate magical energy, I enjoyed studying Magic and Magical systems.

We were deep into the discussion of feedback loops and how they can control the flow of magical energy. There were different feedback loops, like proportional control and integral control. We learned that by studying the types of feedback loops, we could apply control algorithms within magical systems.

Toward the end of class, he demonstrated, theoretically, how magical systems could be stabilized by control algorithms and a few examples of unstable vs. stable magical—

“Holy shit!” I said, standing up suddenly.

I could feel the class’s attention snapping over to me.

Stewart looked at me, a frown on his face. “Mr. Atkins? Something to share with the class?”

I was panting. Control algorithms! The stability of magical systems! It all became clear to me why April had done this, why she was being such a bitch, and why—

“Uh…restroom,” I said. “May I use the restroom?”

He rolled his eyes. “There’s only five minutes of class left, can’t you—”

“I really gotta go!” I grabbed the restroom pass and headed out the door. The rest of the class snickered and pointed at me as I left.

“By all means,” Mr. Stewart said as I left, and I knew he meant that sarcastically. I’d have to make it up to him, but I needed to talk to April.

“On your way to your Mistress, fool?” A voice called. I glanced over and saw Jenni Stapleton walking out of the girls’ room.

I ignored her but kept on jogging.

I got to April’s room just as the bell rang. I pulled open the door and waded through the throng; I made my way to April’s desk, where she was packing up her things.

“Wow, stupid, I didn’t think you’d get here this—”

“I need to talk to you,” I said, pulling her toward the back of the classroom. She was in Chemistry lab. All the students were filing out of the room, and the instructor was preparing for the next class.

“We don’t have a lot of time,” she said. “My next class is in the one hundred section.

I winced. That would be a long hike, but I really needed to talk to her privately.

“I’m your control algorithm, aren’t I?”

She frowned at me. “My what now?”

“The control algorithm! I’m the…whatever…that’s making magic stable for you!”

“Shhh!” She hushed me, pulling me in closer. “Keep your voice down, you have no idea what you’re dealing with.”

“Why didn’t you just fucking tell me?”

Now it was her turn for her teeth to clench. “I don’t know what you think you’ve learned, but I can assure you that—”

“I’m the reason the black magic hasn’t overcome you, right? You’re using me as a conduit because I’m a supernatural being that can’t manipulate magic.”

She crossed her arms, and I thought she was about to cry.

“Look, just nod once. I know you have another set of algorithms working against you, am I correct?”

She nodded, once.

“And in order for the algorithms to complete, you have to act in a certain way?”

“Get my stuff,” she said, pointing to her backpack. “And let me get to my class!”

“Look, you don’t have to do this alone!” I said. “We can get—”

“Fool!” She screamed, walking back to her desk. “Take my backpack!”

I took a breath. She was right, I really didn’t know the extent of the pressure she was under. But at least -- I liked to think at least -- she wasn’t doing this…I don’t know, intentionally. She was doing it because whatever magical system she was a part of was forcing her to complete certain algorithms within a certain parameter in order to maintain the stability of the system.

“Yes, Mistress,” I said, gathering up her backpack.

She walked quickly, and I had to scurry a little to keep up. Normally she had to keep up with me because of my longer legs, but I could tell she was pissed.

“Look, I get it. I’ll stop—“

“That’s just it, Seth, I don’t want you to stop.”

I paused a moment. “I don’t get it.”

“You were obviously in Stewart’s class when you learned all this about magic right?”

“Yes.”

“So fucking ask him why I need this.”

I sighed. “When can I do that?”

She shook her head, and we continued on to her next class. She grabbed her backpack from me and walked into the classroom without looking or even acknowledging my presence.

God, she could be a bitch.

Grumbling, I realized I’d walked out of Differential Equations without my own backpack. I walked back there, and Mr. Stewart was grading papers at his lectern at the front of the classroom. I was going to be late, so I figured I might as well make it worth my while.

“Hey, Mr. Stewart, can I ask you a quick question?”

“That’s why I exist, Mr. Atkins.” He sighed and removed his spectacles.

“Yeah. So, I’m actually April Lancaster’s ‘fool.’ She’s the one who did this to me.”

He took off his glasses and frowned. “Oh?”

“Yeah, and I realized what you said about magical systems and all—“

He nodded. “Yes. A control algorithm within a feedback loop can help stabilize a magical circuit.”

“Well, I did some thinking, and I realized I’m April’s control algorithm. By using magic on me, or whatever, she’s stabilizing her magical system so she doesn’t go full dark.”

He winced a bit. “You know there’s no dark or white magic, it’s the intent behind it that—“

“Yes, I understand that.”

Atkins nodded and started drawing on the board. “So, here we have Miss Lancaster, and this dotted circle around her represents her ability to draw magic from the Universe into herself. Remember that magic permeates all living—“

“Yes, living, inert, crystalline, etc.”

“Yes.” He drew some large arrows in red. “These arrows represent the force around Miss Lancaster. Remember with Magic users, it’s not that they can’t access magic until they need it—“

“They’re filled with magic until they release it, yes, I understand the concept.”

“So yes, every April First she must have a magical system that exerts tremendous pressure on her. Pressure to be used, to be released, in larger and larger amounts.”

He tapped his chin, thoughtfully.

“She is, the most potent magic user at High Valley High, of course. Probably one of the most potent in town, actually, so that makes sense.”
“So I have to just allow her to continue to use magic on me? Why is she being such a bitch about it?”

He nodded. “Magical systems, and geas of all types have different requirements. Without performing an examination of her, I can’t comment. But I do know from experience, that the more resistance the magical being has to overcome, the more magic is consumed. It’s kind of like a firehose putting out fire…” he made another drawing on the board.

“A firehose can easily put out the fire of a candle. It’s too strong for the candle, and there’s all kinds of potential for backwash, and collateral damage…that kind of thing.”

“Okay,” I said.

“So when you resist, or act against her wishes, the fire is larger, hotter, and there’s less collateral damage.

I frowned. “So she actually needs me to resist?”

He shrugged. “No, idea. But that does align with the veracity of her argument.”

“So the more I resist…”

“The more magic she can use to overcome your resistance. You already have a large amount because you're a supernatural creature. It’s a dangerous game because she could trigger your curse inadvertently if she steps too far.”

“Yeah, I felt that.”

“Does this help at all?”

I nodded. “It helps a great deal.”

“I’m glad I could provide some assistance.”

I started to walk out the door…then stopped. “So, the more I resist, the more magic she expends. What happens if I resist too much?”
“I suspect she doesn’t know the limit to her own power. It depends on which of you is stronger, I would guess, Seth.”

I nodded and walked out the door.

So, my ex-girlfriend is the most powerful magic user at our school, and she has chosen me to be her magical toilet. I mean, that couldn’t go wrong at all, Right?

Right.

I sighed, and began running to my next class.

My next class, luckily, was study-hall. Mr. Davis, the instructor, could care less that I was almost fifteen minutes tardy.

“I was talking to Mr. Stewart about an assignment.”

Davis glanced up from his EyPad, then shook his head as if he was seeing a mirage. “What the hell?”

“What?” then my hair sorta fell forward a bit. “Oh, yeah. I’m April’s Fool, today.”

He laughed. “Looks good on you, kid.”

“Hah. Thanks.” I went and found an empty seat.

Mitzy Butterfly got up and moved seats, as did Jeff Farnum.

“So?” Mitzy said.

I shrugged, sighed, and told them about what I’d discovered about April’s magical system.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Jeff said. “She needs you to resist? You’ve already been resisting.”

“Yeah, I guess I need to try harder.”

Mitzy frowned. “That doesn’t seem fair.”

“I’d rather all this happen to me than to you, Mitzy.”

She nodded, looking downward.

Mitzy was a kind soul trapped in an unkind world. Her Were curse fed her outlook a bit. She loved flowers, dandelions, and plants of all sizes, shapes, and colors. She was a quiet girl who kept to herself, with rainbow-colored pixie short hair and a cute button nose.

I suspected she was gay, or at least bi, but never wanted to press it. She usually wore jeans and a long sleeve shirt that hid her butterfly tattoos. She had four or five tats on her shoulders and arms, and I thought they were awesome. She was a great friend and always there when I needed her.

“So, what are you going to do for lunch?” Jeff said.

Jeff was the opposite of Mitzy. He wasn’t a were, his parents were both vampires, though they had yet to turn Jeff. It always made me sad to think that the happy-go-lucky best friend would one day become a blood-sucking vampire, but there you go. I supposed I was a ravening animal three nights a month, so I couldn’t cast stones. He was more than a bit overweight from the video games he consumed constantly.

It was our study hall ritual to decide where to eat, and depending on the location, we often snuck out the back of the room when Davis wasn’t watching. He was the football coach and cared little for any students unless they were geared up in pads and a helmet.

I played for the High Valley Saints Baseball team as their starting catcher. I was supposed to head out to the weight room for pre-season conditioning, but today I figured I’d need to pretend to be April’s Fool. Jeff was our equipment manager but wasn’t needed for pre-season workouts.

“I think I should probably help her out, don’t you think?” I said.

Mitzy shook her head. “I don’t believe it, Seth. I mean, yes, maybe she needs someone to express her magic on, but come on, she didn’t and doesn’t need to treat you like that. If it is true, she takes too much joy doing it, you know?”

“So, what, we sneak off campus? I’m supposed to be doing three-a-days.”

“She wouldn’t disrupt weight-training would she?” Jeff said. “I mean, a joke’s a joke, but come on, she wouldn’t destroy your rep there, right?”

I shook my head full of ebony tresses.

“Good point.”

“What I want,” I said. “Is for her to leave everyone alone. Including me.”

“Buuuut—“ Mitzy said.

“But, if she’s going to pick on someone, I’d rather it be me than anyone else. I can take it; I’m not sure about everyone else.” I touched Mitzy’s nose. “Boop.”

“She needs you to resist, though, right?” Randy said. “What better way to resist than to ignore her completely.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Good point.”

“Yeah, stop cow-towing to her…or, well, wolf-towing…” Mitzy said.

“Hah, hah,” I replied.

“No, seriously. The more she has to seek you out, the more she has to punish you, the more—“

“The more girly you become!” Jeff said a little too loudly.

“Whatever is going on back there, you three need to be silent,” Coach Davis said.

“Sorry, Coach,” I said in response.

I winced as my hair caught in the back of the chair. “Can you at least do something with it?” I whispered to Mitzy. It’s annoying as hell like this.

“Braids or bun?” Mitzy said.

“Braids until I can get it hacked off.”

Mitzy proceeded to fix my hair into a long braided cable. She took out her phone and showed it to me.

I looked at my face…it looked a little…different. “Aw, shit.”

“What?”

I sighed. “No facial hair. By this time, I usually have at least a little scruff.”

“When was the last time you shaved?” Jeff said.

“Last night when I took a shower.”

Both of them ran their hands over my smooth cheeks.

“Hey!”

“Wow, it is smooth,” Mitzy said. “Not even a trace.”

“Maybe she stole all your testosterone!” Jeff said in a harsh whisper.

“I hope not,” I said. “Our first tournament is next week.”

I dug out my phone for the rest of the period and started typing away at the essay I needed to write for first period. Luckily, I knew quite a bit about the Civil War and had a deep understanding of the causes and consequences, so I was able to compare and contrast it fairly easily. I’ve always been a good writer, and the words sprang easily to my mind. I was halfway done when Jeff nudged me.

“Five minutes until the bell rings. What are you going to do?”

I thought about it. Mitzy was right, by ignoring her was the best way to resist her. But at the same time, I really didn’t want this feminization project to progress any further than it already had.

“Fuck,” I said. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to be girlified any more than I already am, but at the same time, I don’t want April to find another target or to magically explode or anything like that.”

“Being a girl isn’t so bad,” Mitzy said. “You might like it.”

“There sure are a lot worse things to be,” Jeff said. “A slug, a bug, a disembodied brain floating on your own tentacles—“

“Hey, don’t give her any ideas!” I said, chuckling. “Point taken.”

“And with the new rules about sports teams, you can still play,” Mitzy said. “I dunno; I think it’d be kinda fun to see how you turn out.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I get your point. Okay. I’m going to officially resist.”

“Yay!” Mitzy said, her eyes dancing a bit. “Can I come watch?”

“Sure.”

At the bell, the three of us walked out the door and moved with the flow toward the cafeteria. I grabbed a sandwich and milk, paid, then went to the weight-room.

Jeff and Mitzy followed after; eyes peeled for April and her entourage.

I ate my sandwich on the way and sucked down the milk, tossing the container into the trash. I was on the mat finishing my stretches when Stephanie Hancock, one of April’s mean girls, came in. Her face screwed up in a grimace at the odor.

“Why aren’t you attending your Mistress, Fool?” she said, her eyes wide with feigned, or maybe not so feigned, shock.

“Tell April she can fuck off,” I said as I loaded 45-pound weights onto each side the straight bar.

“Oh, you’re in for it now, Fool,” she said, stalking off. Her heels clicked purposefully as she left the weight-training room.

“And so it begins,” Jeff said, a grin on his face.

I slid onto the bench and took a grip on the power bar. Jim Swenson, our short-stop, spotted me and came over.

“Reps or strength,” he said.

“Reps.” I began pumping the bar up and down, making sure I got full extension of my muscles, taking it slowly at first. I inhaled and exhaled on each repetition, making sure to oxygenate my muscles thoroughly.

I stopped paying attention to my surroundings and started feeling the strength in my limbs. I loved weight training, testing my limits, getting my muscles to sing. I had a bit better than average strength due to my curse, and I took full benefit of it whenever possible. The physical exertion brought clarity and focus to my mind, and the deep breathing helped to make sure I was in top shape for each repetition of the exercise.

The weight-room was silenced as I continued to work. Jim looked up at something or someone, and I knew April had entered the room. An icy wave swept across us, palpable and thick. I wondered if she did that on purpose or was a side-effect of whatever chaos magic she accessed.

“Fool!” she said in a quiet voice. “What is it you think you are doing?”

I exhaled as I pushed the bar up to the apex. “What does it look like I’m doing, Witch?”

Several of my teammates guffawed at that.

“You agreed to be my fool!” she said, and I could feel her gathering power. I’m not sure why I could feel that. It was a new feeling I’d never had before.

“You will put that bar down and attend me.Now.”

I shook my head. “Guess again!”

The weight bar with two 45-pound weights wrenched itself out of my hands and embedded itself in the ceiling above me.

Where it stuck, unmoving.

That did not bode well.

-----------------------------------------

If you enjoyed this please consider joining my patreon at https://patreon.com/rainemonday

An unseen force pulled my braid harshly, forcing me up onto my tiptoes. If I extended as far as possible with my calves, I could slightly relieve some of the pressure. I gripped the hair and engaged some of my core strength.

“Ow!” I said as she held me up in front of her with her power. The weight bar stayed firmly embedded in the ceiling, which meant she held us both with her magical iron strength.

“Fool!” she screamed in my face, her eyes were inky black orbs fastened to me. “Your job is to always accompany me and be punctual!”

“Yeah?” I said, laughing and trying not to writhe in pain. “Who gives a fuck, April? You’re nobody!”

Hey, if she wanted me to resist, I would resist, but I thought my scalp might peel off like a grape skin at some point. Did that happen? Or did it just slough off with your face? Images flitted through my mind of the bloody, gory wreck this could turn into—

My curse raged behind my will. I could feel it wanting to escape, wanting to make short work of the Witch with her accursed energy. It took all my willpower and imagining the song in my mind to hold it at bay.

The magical bonds tossed me up against a wall, then released me. “Ow, fuck!” I said, as my shoulder impacted hard against the brick surface. High Valley Saints was printed in huge letters across the wall in black and yellow, with a picture of our emblem, two crossed swords against a shield.

I think a bit of the curse sort of escaped a little. I could feel my shoulders hunching, my jaw dropping open as I looked at my attacker. I opened my hands, wanting to feel claws, as I leaped across the space and tackled her.

I rolled her onto the ground and held her there, ready to rip out her throat with my—

The weight bar came clanging down to the floor. Startled, flinched.

“Seth, come back to me,” she patted my cheek softly, looking into my eyes.

Azure eyes, looking up. Eyes I’d fallen in love with. April’s Eyes.

Wait. What just happened?—

I glanced around and saw the fear on people’s faces. I looked down at my arms and could see the shredded fabric of my shirt and the bunched muscles of my curse trying to escape, but it was fading slowly. I panted harshly, feeling her body under me, warm and writhing and…

I blinked and stood up.

Everyone regarded me with fear in their eyes.

Great.

I’d shown just enough of my curse to make everyone afraid of me.

Just great. Dad was gonna be pissed.

She’s a child throwing a tantrum.

I pulled April up. After she got on her feet, I swatted her behind sharply.

“Ow!” she squealed. “Did you just…”

“Be glad that is all I ‘just.’” My curse-filled voice echoed off the walls of the weight room.

She whispered then, and if I wasn’t filled with my curse, I wouldn’t have heard it. “I still need to punish you.”

Fuck. Closing my eyes, I turned around.

“Whatever the fuck it is, get it over with. I need to calm down and change my clothes…they’re all shredded.” I looked at my shirt, which had split in several different places. I grabbed the front and pulled it off my body like a male stripper.

Look, I’m a werewolf. And I work out. So my chest is…chiseled. And it’s pretty hairy. It’s not something I’m proud of, but yes, women seem to like it.

“And then I will attend you. Jesus fucking Christ.”

She wiped a tear away. I don’t know if it was because I hurt her or because she was glad I was helping her. At that moment, I didn’t care.
“For your punishment,” she said in a somewhat but not quite shaky voice.

I felt that strange tingly feeling again. This time I could see the magic building up inside her and flowing into my body. It was strange.
I expected it to come out of her hand, but it was like the energy slid up from the ground somehow; it didn’t spray out in front of her.

The magical energy slid up my body, and my body hair all fell away. It was like a snowfall, only with dark hair instead of flakes. In short order, my skin, arms, and, I assume, all my other body parts were slick and smooth as the day I was born.

Clothing materialized from somewhere. I was no longer wearing my jeans and not much else. A Gothic black dress wrapped itself around me, not unlike the one April was wearing.

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Oh, and—“

I felt pulled up again, but this time only a short distance, and settled back down onto—

“Heels?” I said, stumbling a little. “Really?”

“Mhmm,” she said, and she was blushing. I rolled my eyes.

Her eyes faded to black again. “Now, go attend to yourself and meet me in the quad in fifteen minutes!”

“Yes, Mistress,” I said.

She and her entourage left the room, whispering and gossiping. Some of the girls cast glances back at me with what I’d like to think was newfound appreciation but was probably fear.

I shrugged my shoulders, then went to the back of the room where some cushioned benches had been arranged. I plopped down into one, exhausted.

“You okay, man?” Jeff said, approaching with Mitzy. Both of their eyes were wide with shock and/or fear. The rest of my team had gone back to their workout.

“Yeah, shit. That almost got away from me.”

“Dude!” Jeff said. “You were like….Holy shit, man, how close were you to changing?”

“Close,” Mitzy said, taking my hand in hers and sitting beside me.

“I’m guessing everyone knows this is all just theater now,” I said, yawning. I’d expended a lot of energy.

“Yeah,” Mitzy squeezed my hand. “You had her, though, Seth. I think you surprised her with that move. I’ve never seen anyone move that fast; it was…well--”

“Supernatural?”

“Yeah.”

“And that was just the smallest fraction of the curse that leaked through. Ugh, I have to be careful.”

“You can’t let her get you into a position where you go full feral, Seth. Have you ever considered that may be her ultimate goal here?”

“What, to turn me into an animal? Couldn’t she have done that like Bruce, or Becky?”

“Not sure it works like that on a Were. She may be trying to trigger your curse on purpose, though, so she can eliminate you as a threat.”

“The elimination would have been her when I ripped her throat out. Not the best plan if that’s what she’s trying to do.”

“By now, someone has told someone and the school administration will be gunning for you.”

“Yeah,” I said. “Which means they’ll be calling my father.”

“I’m sorry, Seth.”

I sighed, nodding. “Me too.”

Standing up was a bit of a chore. It was like trying to balance on a bicycle again, if the bicycle only had one point of contact on each foot. “How the fuck do women walk in these?” I said, nearly turning my ankle. “Ow, fuck!”

“Those are low heels, at least.” Mitzy grinned. “Getting some newfound appreciation for how the other side yet, Seth?”

I rolled my eyes, looking into the gym mirror. The black dress had a corset laced up the back that cinched my middle. It looked stupid with my male but hairless chest. I held up the skirt a bit.

“Twirl!” Jeff said.

“Fuck off,” I said.

“You okay?” Mitzy said.

“Yeah, all under control now.”

She linked my left arm in hers, and Jeff linked my right. We walked out of the weight room. It helped me to stay steady on my feet.

I think I was going to need it.

Walking into the quad, I quickly located April amongst her little group. She was holding court with about six other girls, and had her back turned to me.

Shaking my head, I approached her. I’d finally gotten the hang of the low heels she forced me to wear. It took a bit of care to make sure I didn’t step on the swishing full dress she’d wrapped around my frame. You had to kind of kick the dress out of the way, before taking a step or you risked a tumble, and I was humiliated enough already without adding that little cherry on the sundae.

I did some quick isometrics with my biceps, quads, and pectoral muscles to appear as masculine as I could. Sweat gleamed on my smooth skin, and all things considered, I didn’t hate the way the bodice enhanced my pecs.

“I’m here,” I said, trying to glower. I didn’t have to try very hard.

“Oh, fool.” She gave a little wave of her hand as if the entire incident in the weight room had never happened. “We were just talking about you.”

“That so?”

“Mhmm.” She approached me. “Kayla and Stephanie want me to go full face makeup next, but Jenni and Charlotte think I should start working on that frame to make it a bit more willowy. What do you think?”

I sighed. “What does it matter what I think?”

She gave me a bright smile. “You’re right! It doesn’t matter!”

She turned with a gleeful twirl of her hair and dress to gossip some more with her group.

I stood, feeling like an idiot, and found Mitzy and Jeff in the crowd. They spoke with each other but nodded at me and Mitzy gave me a forlorn wave.

Miss Minnick, Henry James, the SchoolMaster and High Sorcerer, along with Pete Vargas, our werewolf alpha pack leader and the chief of security approached us a few minutes later.

“Miss Lancaster,” Henry James said. “A word, please.”

April turned to them, and for a brief moment, I saw her eyes go black, but then they returned to normal. “Of course!”

The group walked off a ways, and Jeff and Mitzy took the opportunity to slide up to me.

“What do you think that’s about?” Jeff said.

“What do you think?” I replied. I felt a quickening in my guts like butterflies would come spewing out of my mouth. I wish I’d eaten more than just the sandwich, I was now ravenously hungry.

Which is not a good state for a Werewolf to be.

“Think they’re going to suspend you, Seth?” Mitzy said. Her eyes were wide. She was a severe introvert and hated confrontations, so this must have been torture for her.

“Hey,” I said, putting my hands on her shoulders. “Whatever happens, whatever they do has nothing to do with you.”

She nodded, swallowing, and I could tell she was holding back tears. “I feel—“

“I know how you feel.” I tipped her chin so she’d look up into my eyes. “Don’t worry. No matter what happens, we’ll all be okay.”

She nodded again; then her eyes darted to the group of administrators.

They were telling April something she didn’t want to hear. I could see her stamping her foot in frustration, and her voice took on a higher pitch. I used my curse to narrow the focus of my hearing, to eavesdrop a little on their conversation.

“Miss Lancaster, you have put this entire school in jeopardy with this little game you are playing with a powerful Shifter. It ends now,” Miss Minnick said.

“But he agreed to it!” April protested. “I’m just making him follow through on his commitment! Isn’t that what you want the students of High Valley High to achieve?”

“In normal circumstances, that might be the case,” Henry James said. “But I know your mother has brought you in on the situation we are currently facing. Do you want to possibly add a feral werewolf on top of all that?”

Wait. What was this now?

April’s shoulders deflated. “No.”

“This occurrence happens once every thousand years. Do you really want to be the one to undo everything we’ve brought to focus here at High Valley High?”

“Oooh, it isn’t fair!” she said, stamping her foot. “You know how bad my Cycle has been over the past few months!”

“I know, child, believe me,” Miss Minnick said. “I’ll bring in an ifrit to ground you out if needed.

“Under normal circumstances, I’d be all for you doing whatever you wanted with Atkins,” Pete Vargas said. “He’s strong and could be a future alpha, for sure, so anything to humble him is okay in my book. But right now, with the Who, who stands at the Gate, we can’t risk anything more than what will happen. We’ll need him and every single shifter we can get to combat this Thing.”

I frowned. What the hell were they talking about?

“Do you guys know anything about a Gate and someone standing at it?” I whispered.

Both of my friends shook their heads.

“What gate?” Jeff said, a little too loud.

Miss Minnick shot us a glance, and I saw her eyes focus on me. Heat waves rose off her brow, and I briefly saw her skin fade to red before returning to normal.

“Aw, shit,” I said.

“What?”

“You let the bag out of the cat.”

The group returned. Pete put a hand on my shoulder, and I’m not sure it was a friendly gesture.

“This little game you’ve been playing is over,” Miss Minnick said. “Mr. Atkins, you are no longer April’s fool.”

The crowd moaned as one at this. “Aww, it was fun, though!” Jenni Stapleton said.

“Miss Landcaster, you will return Mr. Atkins to normal this instant.”

She waved her hand, and I was wearing what I put on this morning, jeans, a pullover polo shirt, and my trusty athletic shoes.

“I can’t do anything about the hair or your skin, but you should be your normal hairy self after your next change,” she said in a deflated voice.
Pete’s grip became stronger.

“Thank you,” I said. “Here’s your backpack.”

She took it without saying anything. Then, strangely, her eyes turned on Mitzy. “Be good to him.”

Mitzy blinked. “Okay?”

April spun and returned to her little group.

“I wonder what that was—“

“We need to talk,” Pete said. He pulled me over toward the wall.

“That’s all to see, children. Fun is over. Now, what do we say about getting to class?”

They began to echo. “To be early is to be—“ but the rest of the chant was drowned out by the furious Alpha wolf who was gripping my collarbone like he wanted to crush it.

“Ow!” I said, wrenching myself from his grip. “What the hell, Pete?”

Pete was short, stocky, and had stiff black hair and tan skin. He was Latino and spoke with a slight accent.

“You dodged a bullet here, Ese.”

I rubbed my collarbone where he’d gripped me. It was going to bruise. “How so?”

His finger came up.

“One: that little girl has no idea how close she came to triggering you. Two: I can smell the change on you, so you got this close—“ he held up his fingers about an inch apart, “to going full feral and being stuck as a wolf the rest of your life! What the fuck, Seth? You know better!”

“Yeah, she got under my skin a little,” I said. “I admit it.”

“I should have let that girl turn you full-on bitch!” He gave me a sharp slap across the face, and I yelped. “You are way to smart to let a little brujita like that get the better of you! Let her play her games, but you don’t, don’t—“

He flicked me hard with his index finger on my forehead.

“You don’t let her get to you like that. You’re way too smart of a student to be a feral werewolf locked in a pen, Ese.”

“I get it, Pete, Jesus.”

He shook his head, took a few deep breaths, and controlled himself.

“What the hell were you guys talking about back there anyway? What was that about a Gate?”

He looked at me and ground his teeth. “Using your curse to eavesdrop, are we?”

I gave a little shrug.

He sighed heavily. “Look. I’m not supposed to tell you this…or even mention it.” He held his hands out, closed his eyes and shook his head.

“Something is about to go down in High Valley. Something big.”

I resisted the urge to prod some more and let him figure out what he wanted to say.

“And it’s coming at the dark of the moon. When all of our power is at its lowest.”

My class after lunch was Advanced Placement English, with Mr. Vaidya. Vaidya was a quiet, mousy kind of guy who spoke in a thin voice and had an East Indian accent. One of the things we found unintentionally hilarious was when he recited poetry, and today was no exception.

“Today, class, ve vill be studying Dylan Thomas, a Velsh Poet who came to US on four occasions. He is vone of the most important Velsh poets of the 20th Century.”

“Do not go gentle into dat good night,
Old age should burn and vage at close of day;
Vage, Vage against de dying of de light.”

I closed my eyes. I really didn’t want to laugh, but already snickers and snorts were sounding from around the room.

He really tried hard not to speak with a heavy accent, but I think that made things worse, and as the poem went on, the class couldn’t help but erupt into laughter.

Confused and frustrated, Mr. Vaidya told us to write a three-page essay analyzing the metaphorical language and themes and to put it into the historical and cultural context of the period.

Sighing, I pulled out my spiral-bound notebook and began writing. I loved writing essays, it allowed me to get all of my thoughts onto paper and it made so much more sense than answering multiple guess worksheets or True and False lists.

As I wrote, my mind quickly assessed, analyzed then synthesized the time period, the events happening when the poem came out, the culture of the period…

My pen flicked out of my hand and onto the table. I rolled my eyes and bent to pick it up. As I reached for it, I saw something was wrong with my hand—

My nails had extended beyond my fingertips. Not just the index and middle fingers, all of them on my right hand had extended, check that, were extending. A quick glance at my left hand showed the exact same thing happening.

I quickly shoved my hands up under my armpits. I looked around to see if anyone else had noticed me looking at my fingers. Everyone’s head was buried in their work, including Mr. Vaidya who was typing something on his computer at the front of the classroom.

I darted a quick glance at my fingertips again, and they were longer. The nails were extending, and my fingers appeared to be slimming and taking on a much more feminine cast.

I closed my eyes. April. She must still be fucking with me. Jeff, Mitzy and I planned to get together after school to discuss what
happened. This was one of the few classes we didn’t share. Jeff and Mitzy were over in the Vocational wing, which was clear across campus. I decided to at least go to the restroom to see if any other changes were happening.

I got up and snatched the hall pass off the wall so no one could see my extended fingernails. Without a word, I waved the pass at Myron who gave me a nod and headed out the door.

Luckily the boy's restroom wasn’t far away, and I got into one of the stalls. Opening my hands, I saw they were nearly complete. A few more millimeters and my nails looked like they could be adorning any of the female students at our school.

“What the bloody fuck?!” I said in an urgent whisper. I didn’t have a fingernail clipper or anything, so I stuck the index finger on my right hand into my mouth and bit down, tearing the nail off, then proceeded to do the middle, ring, and pinky fingers…

Only to see they were growing back, almost as fast as I could bite them off, and even longer.

“No, no no, this can’t be happening!”

I pulled up my shirt to see if any other changes had affected my body, but everything seemed to be the same. I pulled down my pants to make sure things down there hadn’t changed, and luckily that was where it was supposed to be also.

I took out my phone and tapped an urgent message to April to meet me in front of the south quad lockers, STAT. She might not be looking at her phone, so it could take some time for her to see it. I watched the indicator and saw READ illuminate moments after it said; RECEIVED.
“Brt,” she texted back. I exhaled and grabbed the hall pass, then went to the quad area.

She arrived, looking annoyed. “What is it?” she said in a hiss. “I’m in the middle of a test!”

I held up my fingers in front of her. “What the actual fuck, April? I thought they told you to remove whatever spell!”

Her eyes grew wide, and she shook her head. “I did!”

“Then how do you explain this!”

She closed her eyes. A few moments later, she opened them again. “There’s some connection from me to you. Seth, I didn’t create that!”

“Well, can you disconnect it or whatever?”

She closed her eyes again. This time, I could see something in the air between us. It was strange, like seeing a mirage through a desert landscape. It swam, and I found myself closing my own eyes.

Images sprang into view as if I was opening an eye I didn’t even know I had. April stood in front of me, but in this mind’s eye view, she glowed with an ethereal pink light that surrounded her. A tendril connected her to me at our midsections, and as I looked down at myself, I could see I glowed a bright orange. The tendril connected her to me, pink and orange entwined, enmeshed. I could see another tendril extend outward from her and grasp the connecting tendril. It pulled, and I felt a sensation inside me, painful, that wrapped itself around my core and ended somewhere in my testicles.

She pulled harder, and I gasped. “Oh, shit!” I said. “That hurts!”

She withdrew her tendril. “Sorry. There’s a….”

“Yeah, I see it,” I said and somehow extended my own tendril, grasping it and pulling. She gasped in response also. “Oh!” That hurts too!
I narrowed my focus, zooming in on the tendril. Mixed in with the orange and pink, a third strand was black as midnight. We couldn’t see it from above, but it was there.

“There’s another tendril,” I said. “Zoom in, and you can see it.”

“Ohh, yes. But how did you—?”

I followed the black strand and zoomed in. Her voice was in the background. I wanted, no, needed to pay attention to this. The tendril flowed out from between us, black as pitch. It had several junctions that went in different directions, but the main junction—

“Seth, you need to stop.”

It went somewhere below us, somewhere deep in the building. I could follow it where it led, sliding lower and—

Someone slapped me across the face hard. I winced and opened my eyes. “Ow!”

“I told you to stop!”

I rubbed my jaw, where she slapped me. “I was following—“

“Seth, you aren’t supposed to be able to do that.”

“I know, but I thought if we could find out where—“

“Seth, only witches can do that. You opened your third eye!”

“Is that what that was?”

“Yes!”

I sighed. “Well, maybe whatever you did to me—“

“All I did was cause your body hair to fall out. And a simple illusion spell for the clothing. I did not tamper with your body construction; someone placed this connection between us…or something else.”

Sighing, I sat down on the carpeted bench against the wall. “Great, all I need.”

She sat down next to me and held my hand.

For a brief moment, I felt at peace for the first time all day. We sat there, waiting for the bell to ring, holding hands.

“You know, I never wanted any of this to happen,” she said, breaking the spell.

“And you know that Mitzy and I are just friends. I don’t know why you freaked out that day.”

She pulled her hand away. “I know, Seth. But what I’m becoming, who I’m becoming…you wouldn’t like. It was necessary to extricate myself from our relationship.”

“You mean the gothic lolita bitch witch?”

She chuckled at that. “I take it you don’t like the look.”

“I know the real you underneath all the makeup, hair, and clothes. You don’t need all that to shield yourself.”

“Says the Cis white man.”

I glanced at my fingernails. “Not sure how much longer on that.”

“I’d need to consult with my mother to find out what’s happening to us.”

“Lovely,” I said, sighing. “I only have PE and Spanish left. If we want to head over to your place, can we find out what’s going on?”

“I still need to finish my test in government.”

“Can it wait?” I looked at my hands and arms. It was like a woman’s hands were attached to the end of my masculine arms. “I mean, it’s definitely spreading. I haven’t looked at my feet, but I’m about to slip out of my athletic shoes. I think they’re shrinking too.”

“Hold up your hands,” she said.

I held them up, palms out to her. She did the same.

Our hands were exactly the same size, with nails exactly the same length. Hers were colored a glossy deep purple.

We looked into each other’s eyes, shocked.

“How could this be happening?” I said.

“It’s the tendril connecting us. Something about it is…well, creating a duplication?”

“Why the hell would someone want that?”

As I watched, my nails filled in with color—the same deep purple as April’s.

“Oh, that’s freaky as shit!” I said. “April, we have to stop this!”

“It’s like spell I used to duplicate my dress and hair is still going!”

I brushed out the long ebony locks. “I haven’t tried cutting the hair, but if they’re anything like the nails, it’ll grow back almost immediately.”

She snorted. “We could make a fortune selling to a wig store.”

I smiled at her giggle snort. That was the old April shining through.

“What the hell am I going to do about practice!” I said.

“Tell coach you’re feeling sick or something?”

“April, we have to get this to stop. Right now! Maybe if we both pull on each side of the tendril, it’ll break the spell?”

“I suppose it’s worth a shot,” she said. “It was so strange when you tugged on it, like it was anchored right in my ovaries.” She closed her eyes a moment and put her hand on her stomach.

“Yeah, and mine is in my nads. Think that is why I’m changing into you?”

“I’m sure it has something to do with it.”

“Well, let’s try it, at least.”

She nodded, and we stood up, facing each other. “I warn you, don’t follow the black thread, however. I suspect I know where that is anchored, and it could spell doom if we pull on that one.”

“We might not have any choice, April!” I said.

“There are far worse things than being in a duplicate body, Seth.”

I nodded, sighing. “Well, let’s at least try.”

She nodded, and we both closed our eyes—

And opened our third eye.

I took a look around first. Everything looked so different, like I was seeing the threads of reality all bound together. I could see between the walls and the people beyond. Most of the kids around us were pretty dull, but among them were some shining ones who had…well, aura’s a bit simplistic, but an inner fire that glowed bright. April’s light shone the brightest, and modestly, I saw mine did too. Her light was a shining pink, while mine was orange, but as I watched, I saw the pink sliding along the thread toward me...

“Your aura is blending with mine,” I said in a soft voice.

You don’t need to speak in here. We can hear each others’ thoughts.

Wow, really?” I sent. This is so cool!

Okay, grasp the tendril on your side with your Strength, and I’ll do the same.

I nodded. Okay.

On the count of three, give a modest tug, She sent.

Sounds good.

One, Two…

I took the thread in my invisible hand and gripped it tight.

Three!

I pulled and immediately wished I hadn’t.

April screamed. I don’t know if it was in my mind or in the physical world. I think I yelled too, but my mind filled with her pain.
It was like someone with a size twelve steel-toed boot just kicked me in the testicles. I roared in pain and immediately fell to the ground writhing and moaning. My third eye closed, and I just rolled in pain and anguish, feeling very hurt and bruised down there.

“Well,” she said, gasping and with tears in her voice. “That didn’t work.”

“No!” I said, still holding my tender spot.

“I felt it give though. I think we almost snapped it.”

I nodded, sitting up.

I felt a burning in my arms, sliding up my wrists and into my elbows. At the same time, I felt my feet like they were on fire, and it moved up my ankles into my shins and then my knees.

“Oh, Jesus!” I said, trying to put the fire out.

“Oh, I saw that happening!” She said. “It was like a snap back; as your tendril recovered, it pulled some of mine toward it!”

I closed my eyes and opened my third again. I could see what she meant. The pink aura that came from her had slid over my legs and arms up to my knees and elbows.

“Do you think we could…I dunno, pull it back and tie it off maybe?” I said.

“We could try.”

I nodded.

“So rather than break the cord, you want to tie it off?”

“Think that might work?” I said. “You’re the magic user.”

“I suppose it’s worth a try,” she said. “But it will probably still hurt you.”

I nodded, panting. I’d broken out in a cold sweat. I looked at the thread closer, zooming in. I could see where orange met pink, but the entwined black was still there too, like it was the root of it somehow. I didn’t follow the black down into the earth, but I did follow it upward. It joined our thread and seeped over toward April. In some places, the pink had been overcome by the black.

“Umm,” I said. “The black is mixing with your pink.”

She nodded. “That’s why every so often, I have to cast off some of my excess magic. There’s a lot less black now after you helped me earlier. But it’s still there, and it creeps into me. It’s due to the bargain I struck, but I don’t want to speak of that right now.”

“Bargain?”

She nodded quietly, her face turning red.

“April, what bargain did you strike and with whom?”

She shrugged.

“April!” I said, shaking her shoulder. “Obviously, it’s having an impact on you. What the hell did you do?”

She sighed. “It’s part of the Ascension into our Coven. You have to bargain a part of your soul to a Dark One, but I’ve kept it in check, Seth."

I shook my head. “That doesn’t sound right, April. But I guess you have to do what you have to do.”

“Let’s try tying this off. If we can do that, at least slow it somewhat, then I can go finish my test, and then we can go talk to Mom.”

“Okay,” I said.

She took a grip on the thread. “Instead of jerking it, I will try slowly increasing the pressure until I can pull all of my Essence from your body and tie it off. Does that make sense?”

I sighed and took a deep breath. “Go for it.”

I mean, what's the worse that could happen, Right?

I made my way to PE, and went into the locker room.

“What’s the matter, Seth?” Coach Nichols said. “You look a little pale.”

“Uh, nothing Coach,” I said, making my way to my locker. “A little tired today.”

“Yeah, I can see that.” Coach nodded at my hair which I still hadn’t cut. “Tangling with a witch, I take it?”

I rolled my eyes and shrugged. “You know me, Coach.”

“First and Third situations today at practice. Need your head in the game, son.”

I shook my head. I really really loved baseball practice. I was the third baseman, and First and Third situations were my absolute favorite drills.

“Yeah, about that, coach.”

He looked up from his clipboard where he’d been recording the roll.

“I, uh. Have a conflict after school today.”

He set the clipboard down, and crossed his arms over his chest. “What kind of conflict?”

Coach Nichols was also a magic user. I don’t think he was sorcerer level, much less wizard level like Coach Greene, but he was a fair but firm coach. There was going to be no pulling the wool over his eyes.

“Can I talk to you about it in your office?”

“Sure,” he nodded his head in the direction of the coaches office. “Be there in a sec.”

I nodded, and dressed out for PE. This meant changing out of my shirt, pants, and shoes, and putting on the white High Valley High Athletics T-shirt and red shorts. As I changed, I glanced at all my extremities and attachments to make sure everything was where it should be and as masculine as when I woke up.

So far so good, April. I thought.

Great! I heard back, and blinked in surprise.

Wow, you can hear me even now?”

Yep! Be careful what you train your mind on, Seth. I’ll perv all your nasty thoughts!

I pictured in my mind earlier, with when I swatted April soundly on her backside.

Hey! No fair!

I pictured in my mind when April and I had been playing on the playground. She’d had mousy brown hair then, a cute little upturned nose, and chubby cheeks.

I got back an image of a time when sixth graders had cornered me in a vacant lot, and had yanked my pants down. She’d been there that day, when everyone had seen my underwear. She zoomed in on the stains.

Very funny.

Two can play this game, Seth. Don’t forget that!

Yeah. BitchWitch.

Stupid. She sent an image of her in full witch regalia swatting the nose of a tiny little puppy with a newspaper. Bad dog!

I disconnected our communication and grinned. It was the kind of exchange we used to have when we were close. I missed that April, the April I'd fallen in lovely.

She’d slowly pulled on the tendril, earlier, then performed a very intricate and fancy knot, and tied the thread just past my toe. It felt like someone had a string attached to my gonads. They felt stretched a little beyond comfort, like wearing a jockstrap that’s too tight but I could put up with some discomfort if it meant we could make it through the day. She had called the knot, a Witch’s knot and it had magical connotations.

I went into coaches office just as Coach Nichols finished and came in.

“So what’s up?” he said, sitting on the edge of the desk.

I explained everything to him from the start of the day. Beginning with April calling on Mitzy, and ending with the Witch’s knot tied in the connection of our tendril.

Coach closed his eyes briefly, and I figured he was looking through his third eye.

“Wow, that is some powerful stuff right there,” he said.

“Yeah. April is pretty powerful.”

“Not talking about April, Seth. You. Has anyone tested you for magical ability?

“Just what we got in the second grade. I do know I can open my third eye, and I was able to grab the tendril.”

“This is pretty irregular. I know her Coven.”

“Not good?”

He shook his head. “You should think about joining the Brotherhood. We protect all our members no matter how new they might be.”

"I'll give it some thought."

He opened his eyes, and regarded me. “So what does this all have to do with Practice this afternoon?”

“April and I are going to meet with Desdemonia.”

Coach Nichols hissed through his teeth and made the sign of the horns, and spit on the ground. “Don’t use her name in here, son. Especially since you’ve discovered your a magic user.”

“Why?”

He lifted an eyebrow. “I don’t have a lot of time to get into it, but that person is a high level witch of the black order.”

I nodded.

“Have you considered this might be a trap?”

I thought about April. I also thought about what the school leaders had said about the Gate.

“What’s the Gate and who is at it?” I said.

He got up and closed the blinds. “Damn, boy. You have to watch your words. I know you don’t know a thing about magic or magical influences, but you just can’t spout shit out here in the open. I got wards on the blinds, so we should be okay now, but use your head, son!”

“Miss Minnick and Pete Vargas were talking about it.”

“That topic delves into a lot of existential stuff we don’t have time for right now, Seth. Are you familiar with the works of Lovecraft?”

I frowned. “So a Cthulhian horror?”

I shrugged. “Let’s say Lovecraft was not far off the mark. There are beings that exist that could eat the entire earth like a gumdrop.”

“And that’s what's coming through on the dark of the moon?”

He shrugged. “Some think so.”

“I think April suspects the black tendril interwoven with our connection is somehow connected to that too.”

“Like I said, I don’t have time to get into it. We have a class to get to.”

“But you understand where I’ll be at three?”

He sighed, getting up and grabbing some jump ropes. “Yeah. But friend to friend, anything surrounding Desdemonia is going to spell disaster. I’m really sorry your entangled with her daughter, but I wouldn’t trust any of them with a ten foot pole attached to another ten foot pole.”

“What should I do?”

He handed me a card. There was a single name on it, and some geographic coordinates.

“Ernest Langmore?”

“He’s an elder in the Brotherhood. Go to him and tell him what’s been going on.”

I sighed, looking down at the card. If I did that, it would have to be behind April’s back. I didn’t know if she could find me now, with this new connection thing, or knew where I was at all times, or what.

“I take it I shouldn’t tell April that I’d be going to…”

“Elder Langmore? No.”

“She’s in my head, though coach.” I put the card on the desk. “I don’t think I can defy her.”

“She’s talking to you in greyspace?”

“Whatever it’s called yeah. We can apparently communicate with each other.”

He winced.

“I don’t know what kind of abilities she has over me.”

“I’ll reach out to him now,” Coach said. “Maybe he can meet us here before class is over.”

I nodded, and we left to head out to the fields.

“It’s called The Who.” Elder Langmore sat in the pergola in High Valley Recreational Facility which was adjacent to High Valley High School’s Baseball Fields. They were dual purpose with the high school using the fields and having priority, but also used for little league during the off season. The pergola was in a small park-like area south from the ballfield, nestled in a small wooded area that featured a pond and walking path.

Coach had excused me from class to speak with Elder Langmore. He was tall, taller than me, thin to the point of emaciation, with a bald head, and enormous hands. I bet those hands could handle a basketball when he was younger.

“Like the rock band?” I said.

He remained stoic to my wit. “It’s official name is much longer and involves syllables the human tongue cannot produce. Plus, to invoke it could mean metaphysical disaster beyond imagination.”

“Of course,” I said, sitting back on the wooden bench. My curly dark locks kept getting caught on the splinters, and I was forced to shake my head to get them free.

“The Who is the nemesis of all creation.” Elder Langmore held up his hands. “It consumes everything in it’s path, and re-orients it to its dark desires.”

“Great,” I said. “So I’m tied to a being that can turn me into a Hellhound?”

He shrugged.

“Who or what else could it be?"

He shrugged thin shoulders. “Oh, there’s a number of people in this town who could accomplish it. Dark entities of all factions have magical components who could twist that bond into something else.”

“So how do we break it?”

Elder Langmore closed his eyes. Well, they weren’t actually closed, they rolled up into his head, and he moaned softly.
I got a bad vibe from him. He smelled like cigarettes and whisky. He’d put his enormous hand on my shoulder, and it felt oily, evil for want of a better word. I wanted to open my own third eye and look at him, but didn’t want to tip him off in any way.

“A Witch’s knot. Deftly done.”

I nodded. The pain had started increasing, like the jock strap was gripping me tighter and tighter with each passing moment. I sweat in the cool spring breeze, but clenched my jaw forcing the pain down.

He was quiet for a time, his hand rising and falling in the air, and onto my knee. He rubbed my knee a little then started to slide his hand higher—

“Hey, Bro,” I said, slapping it. “None of that!”

He came out of his trance, and shook himself. “Sorry, boy. I was tracing the pattern of the tentacle that is wrapped around your essence. It is nested inside your masculinity.”

“Wait, tentacle?”

He nodded. “What did you think those branches were, boy?”

“I was calling them tendrils.”

“To each his own, I suppose.” He stood. “The witch’s knot will hold for a time, but eventually the tension will become too great.”

That's what I was afraid of. Even now, I practically writhed at how uncomfortable I was. I kept darting a hand down, trying to relieve the pressure but it was like a slow boil.

“Can you break the connection between us?”

“Your young witch is correct. To attempt to sever the connection would alert whoever is attached to the black tentacle. If it is The Who, that could be very bad indeed.”

“Can it be disconnected without alerting Whoever it is?”

He sighed. “Possibly.”

“But—“

He nodded. “But, I’d need you both within my physical reach and I suspect the offspring of Desdemonia would forbid it.”

“Damn, I was hoping you’d be able to help.”

“There is one method that might work." He shrugged. "However--”

“Oh?”

He held up a finger. “If you were to have conjugal relations with the young witch in question, and during said relations at the climax of your release, within greyspace, a nexus could be created that the tentacles could be unwound. It would require a very heightened state that extended for as long as possible.”

My jaw would have hit the floor if it wasn’t attached. “You mean, I’d need to have sex with April?”

He nodded. “And it will require you both to enter greyspace and unwind the tentacles at the moment of climax.”

“I don’t even know how to do that,” I said.

“I could show you,” he responded, again placing his hand on my shoulder. Immediately, I felt the oily, slick, wrongness of his touch and writhed out from under it.

“Which means you’d have to be there?”

He nodded. “Of course.”

“I don’t think April’s mother would like that.

He grinned. His teeth were yellow and many of them were rotten and had fallen out. “Desdemonia, my old nemesis,” he said.

“Yes, that’s April’s mo—“

“Hello Ernie,” a sultry voice said behind me.

I turned and saw April standing next to a somewhat overweight woman in her fifties with midnight hair streaked with gray that was pulled up into an ornate bun on the top of her head. She wore a black dress that clung to her body and displayed her impressive cleavage.

“It’s been too long,” Brother Langmore said. “I was just discussing with this fledgling—“

“I know exactly what you were discussing, Ernie,” Desdemonia said walking closer to us. “Your help is no longer needed.”

The flowers and blooming plants were making my sinuses act up. I felt like I needed to sneeze, but pinched the bridge of my nose and was able to avoid it.

What the actual fuck, Seth. I leave you alone for a half an hour and you go to the Brotherhood? April fidgeted beside her mother. She kept reaching behind her and trying to loosen her corset or something.

I had to tell Coach Marcus why I wasn’t going to be at practice.

Do you know what you’ve done?

I thought about it. No.

Langmore is an ancient elder who is as black as they come!

From what everyone tells me, so is your mom!

April huffed. Yes, but Mother loves me! She would HELP us, stupid.

How am I supposed to know that?

“You know about the Witch’s knot?” Elder Langmore said.

Desdemonia nodded imperceptibly, closing eyes artfully shadowed with navy black and with long extended lashes.

“The Who is at the Gate,” Langmore said. Distantly, I saw Coach Marcus leaving the ball field and begin jogging toward us. He was on his cellphone. “It’s tentacles entwine with their Essence.”

Desdemonia flinched. “We don’t know that. It could be another—“

“You think it’s a coincidence we’re less than two weeks from the Dark Night of the Soul and, The Who is at the gate, and the Key must be used?”

Desdemonia raised her perfectly arched drawn-on brows. “I do know.”

“Then you also know that the only way to extricate these two—“

“Is to have them consummate their relationship, yes. I was going to guide them in this, until you intruded where you didn’t belong."

Coach Marcus arrived. “What’s going on here, folks?”

Brother Langmore regarded Coach Marcus with a long look. Then coach Marcus nodded, and turned to Desdemonia. They must have had words in greyspace or whatever.

“We feel it’s in the boy’s best interest to have someone of the Brotherhood in attendance,” Coach said.

“I feel like a flank of steak at the butchers that you’re bargaining over,” I said. “What are we all talking about?”

Brother Langmore regarded me with rhuemy eyes. “In order for the Gate to be opened, the Who needs a Key.”

“Okay…”

Desdemonia chimed in. “The Key isn’t an object.”

“It’s a person,” April said.

Desdemonia nodded, touching April’s hair softly.

“And you’re that person?” I looked at April.

She shook her head, looking sad.

“No, boy,” Elder Langmore responded.

I looked around the circle at all the faces regarding me. In the distance I could see Mrs. Merrick, HeadMaster James, and some of the other teachers making their way down the path.

“You are.” Desdemonia finished.

I sighed, wondering what could possibly happen next.

“Wait.” I held up my hand. “How is that possible?”

“A Were who can use magic,” April said. “When you opened your third Eye, I knew.”

I sat down, hard. “Well, I’m not going to open anything up.”

“You’re already entangled, boy.” Elder Langmore said. “The quicker you can copulate with this trollop, the quicker the entanglement can be extracted!”

“Don’t be crass, Ernie,” Desdemonia said. “It’s unbecoming.”

“You didn’t think I was so unbecoming when I was copulating with you back in the day, Missy.”

“So droll,” Desdemonia said.

Again, I felt a need to sneeze. I pinched my nose again, and held it back. Damn allergies.

Yeah, they’re doing a number on me too.

Get out of my brain!

You love it and you know it.

I rolled my eyes. “So is someone going to explain to me how I’m the Key to whatever? All I want to do is—“

The bell rang. Coach Marcus said: “I think we should all take a step back and regroup. A lot has been revealed here, and the children need to finish their lessons.”

“All I have is Spanish,” I said. “I can skip it.”

“I have study hall,” April said. She fidgeted, her hand behind her back and pulling at the laces of her corset.

“Very well, then,” Desdemonia said. She waved an elegant hand and an ornate golden lawn chair appeared with accompanying umbrella and small table. “Anyone for a Mint Julep?”

She sat down in the chair. April took one of the copper cups with a sprig of mint leaves. She waved one in my direction, but I shook my head. We were in baseball season, and I definitely didn’t want alcohol muddying up my brain.

“The Who is incredibly powerful, incredibly dangerous, and from all accounts will try to breach the Gate in about two weeks.” Desdemonia took a long sip on her straw and smiled.

“Ten days,” Miss Minnick said. “And the infernals are gathering forces.

“As are the Weres,” Pete Vargas said. When had he arrived?

“In order for the Who to get through, the gate needs to be opened. In order for the gate to be opened, it needs a Key.”

“Right,” I said. “I got that much. My question is how am I the Key?”

She pointed a chubby finger at me. She had extended nails like April. She wasn’t a bad-looking woman, all things considered.

“The Key is someone of multiple factions, not necessarily you but someone like you who can wield magic and has an Alpha level Were constitution.”

Pete Vargas snorted. “He’s not—“

“Let’s not mince words, Peter,” Desdemonia said. “I said Alpha level not that he was the Alpha of your pack. And you must admit, young Seth meets those qualifications, I must say.”

She gave me a lascivious grin, and licked her lips.

“Please, Mother.” April nudged her. “Behave.”

“But then why the tether, or whatever, that is pulling my masculinity away?”

“Abrogation.” Miss Minnick said.

Desdemonia nodded, and made a scoring motion with her index finger in Miss Minnick’s direction.

“I don’t get it,” I said.

“Someone is trying to nullify you,” April said.

“That accounts for the tether between you two,” Desdemonia sipped again on her mint julep, and created another. “The tentacle is a different entanglement.”

“I thought you said that came from your power?” I looked at April. “That’s why you needed to release—“

She nodded.

“My daughter…” Desdemonia said, looking up at April with affection. “Is being groomed to take my place.”

“Bestial practice!” Brother Langmore spat. “If your daughter only knew!”

Desdemonia smiled beatifically. “Oh, my dear, Ernest. She does know. And has agreed anyway.”

“What are we talking about?” I said.

Pete Vargas snarled. “The Bitch is grooming the offspring to become the container for her soul. When the offspring is ready, the Bitch will move into it, and the offspring will be in the cast-off body. It’s disgusting.”

I looked at April. Is that true?

Yes…

You mean, your MOTHER will be in your body and you will—

She nodded, silently, and a tear slipped down her face.

Why would you do that?

Mother is eons old. Just like Brother Langmore. This is what they do.

“You steal bodies?” I said, sitting down next to April. She took my hand, and I squeezed it. We both writhed uncomfortably beside each other.

Desdemonia gave a soft smile. “Is it theft if the body is freely given?”

“What if she says no?” I said.

Desdemonia waved her hand. “Pfft, it’s already in process. I should posses her corpus delicti any time now.”

“Which is why,” Miss Minnick said. “I entangled the two of you.”

Desdemonia leaped out of her chair, her eyes fading to inky pools. “You did what?!?”

Minnick transformed. Gone was the pleasant teacher I knew so well. In a few moments, a true infernal towered in front of us, with red skin, pelted goat legs, barbed tail, and immense leathery wings. Minnick opened her mouth, and fangs extended from the top and bottom. “Do you dare confront me, Wytch?”

A glowing orb of cold silver materialized in Desdemonia’s hand.

Another orb, this one apparently made of molten metal and lava, began to rotate in Minnick’s palm.

“Hold up,” Pete Vargas said, and I noticed he had shifted a bit. He held up hands that had extended claws. “This is not a battlefield, there are children present!”

“If it means, anything,” Minnick said. “The entanglement was for Seth to lend strength to April to extend her transition past the Night of the Soul. That is all.”

“So you’re saying you didn’t know the Atkins boy was powered?” Desdemonia said.

“Absolutely not. Nor did I know a third entity was involved. For this I apologize.”

Desdemonia took a few breaths, and her eyes returned to normal. Minnick also relaxed downward into her teacher form.

“When did the boy become powered then?” Desdemonia asked. “It’s caused quite a problem in my transition.”

“I think I can speak to that,” a familiar voice said. I winced. I knew it would only be a matter of time before—

“Hello everyone,” my father said.

----------------------------------------------
Many thanks to everyone who has read and commented. It keeps me going!
Some of my work can be found at https://rainemonday.gumroad.com
Please consider joining my patreon at: https://patreon.com/rainemonday

My dad wore a three-piece suit and looked like he’d just stepped out of a board room. He owned several businesses in town and had an office over the bank where he’d worked for two decades before becoming an entrepreneur.

He had slicked dark hair, icy blue eyes, and silver cuff links. I think he wore them just to dare everyone on the Magical Council meetings.

“I wasn’t aware the council was taking a field trip today?”

“That’s why I alerted you to our quorum status,” Pete Vargas said. “So you didn’t feel left out.”

“I’d like to speak to my son privately, please,” Dad said. “Son, walk with me.”

I gave April’s hand a squeeze, then followed my dad along the path and out of earshot of even Pete Vargas.

He brushed my hair back from my shoulders. “A lot of excitement today?”

I nodded. “Yes, sir.” I attempted to release the tension in my groin to no avail.

“Is this your doing?”

I shrugged. “Yes.”

“Elucidate the means, please?”

So I told him. From trying to help Mitzy Butterfly, to meeting with Brother Langmore and Desdemonia’s appearance.

My father has the ability to actively listen. He looks you in the eye, nodding at the appropriate times, allowing you to completely relate whatever information he desired. I envied this ability in him.

After relating everything that had happened, he put a hand on my shoulder. “Noble gesture, son. I’m proud of you for standing up for someone who isn’t as strong as you.”

I felt the bite of tears in my eyes. I didn’t please my father often, but the very spare moments of praise always meant a lot. “Thanks, but I guess these are the consequences.”

“Let us return,” he said, pulling me back toward the circle.

We returned to the group where a few more people were holding mint juleps, including Miss Minnick. It looked like they had healed whatever wound had just opened.

“Well, I appreciate everyone’s concern, but I will be taking my son home now. Thank you very much for your help.”

“But Dad…”

He grinned at me, but the smile did not touch his eyes. “Silence.”

My dad was a lot of things. Entrepreneur, Werewolf, Banker, Boxer, Martial Arts expert, Carpenter, Musician, you name it. He played in the town Symphony, brokered major deals with town businesses, owned several restaurants, and even bowled Monday nights.

Everyone knew my dad. Everyone knew he had a temper. Everyone knew…that when my dad got quiet, he needed to be feared. Everyone knew that when he smiled, there would be hell to pay.

“Schoolmaster James, a word please.”

He took the principal off into the woods for a bit. I eavesdropped. I’m sure Dad did this on purpose so I’d hear.

“I expected more from you, Henry. How did things get so out of control?”

“I’m sorry, Jim. I had no idea that Minnick—“

“I expect your full report at the next school board meeting.”

Henry gulped, and nodded.

Oh yeah, my dad is also president of the school board.

“Best be looking for alternative means of employment, Henry. Thank you for your service to the students of High Valley, but that service is no longer needed. This will all be made official at the next school board meeting as well.”

The Schoolmaster deflated, but nodded and began walking back toward the main building.

Desdemonia stood next to her golden chair when father and Schoolmaster James returned. “We have yet to resolve the conjugal relations between these two.”

“A Witch’s knot is currently in place?”

Desdemonia nodded. “Yes but—“

“I will have my own specialists examine my son. If a conjugal visit is needed, one will be arranged.”

“It’s getting…” April said in a small voice, practically tearing at the laces of her bodice. “Uncomfortable.”

My dad looked up at me. “Is that so?”

I nodded, gritting my teeth. It was like someone was twisting my testicles slowly, but with increasing pressure.

“Hmmm,” he said. He stood with his right arm crossed and his left arm perpendicular with his fist loosely in front of his mouth. It was his classic thinking pose, and I’d seen him stand like that trying to decide on a million dollar deal, or what toppings to get on our pizza for the night.

“Pressure is mounting behind the knot,” Desdemonia said. “So if you’re thinking of having him examined, you’d better make it fast.”

“What will happen when the Knot unravels?”

She shrugged. “Unknown!”

I felt a sneeze coming on. It was going to be a big one. I didn’t want to embarrass anyone, so I pinched the bridge of my nose again.

No luck. It was coming. Unknown to me, April also had stood up and was closing her eyes.

“What—“

“Gonna sneeze!” she said.

Overwhelmed by the feeling, I nodded. “Me too!”

Together, we sneezed.

Katchoo!

Pain erupted from my groin. I roared in response. Unfortunately, the sneeze led to another, and another, and another. I heard April sneezing also.

I lost control of my curse. The pain was maddening, and my supernatural body answered. I could feel my face shifting, my claws extending, my heels rising upwards--

The energy built up, and I opened my eyes between sneezes to see April on her knees in front of me. An uncomfortable amount of Pink, Orange, and Black light surrounded us. I couldn’t stop sneezing.

A conflagration swept around us. Wind streamed through our hair, energy building up and up and up with each sneeze.

“Stop them!” Desdemonia said. “If that goes up—“

Brother Langmore gripped my transforming shoulder as Desdemonia held April.

The world exploded in a silent nuclear magical explosion.

I was torn from my body. A tornado of the soul ripped through me, and I felt myself whirling around and around the area. I couldn’t move my arms or my legs. I couldn’t scream, I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t do anything other than ride the course of the maelstrom of magic as my soul was torn asunder.

My life flashed before my eyes. Mom’s eyes, as she laughed and held me after I’d fallen off my tricycle. The smell of her hair after a day at the beach and bringing me to our car. Dad’s grin as the three of us played a round of MoneyCity. Dad helping me through my first Change. Mom’s silver fur as we raced in the moonlight.

Mom’s soft touch on my head as the heart monitor beeped in the background. Dad’s arms holding me back as the trauma team attempted to revive her. Standing at her funeral with unknown relatives who brought dishes of food.

April laughing at me on the playground as we swung on the Monkey Bars. Mitzy Butterfly’s Were form, azure and lovely as the moon glowed through her enormous wings above me.

Jeff Farnum slapping me on the back after a round of ArenaWar. Mr. Douglas, my little league coach yelling “Atta-boy!” after hitting a home run.

Images, senses, feelings, emotions all cascaded together and swirled within a soundless maelstrom. Something changed as the air surrounding us turned green.

The smell of rotton eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses. I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and--

Oblivion intruded.

My senses returned sometime later, along with sound. I could hear snarling, snapping, barking but it wasn’t normal barking, it was Were barking. I knew that sound well.

Opening my eyes I saw three werewolves locked in battle. Two of them were much larger than the third, but they all tore into each other, snapping and clawing and roaring. Miss Minnick stood up in infernal form and cast three bubbles of darkness that swarmed over the werewolves, then separate them from each other. They were bleeding, ravenous. We were lucky they hadn’t turned on us—

April was kneeling in front of me, holding her head and Brother Langmore looked at me, then groaned. “Ohhh nooo!” he looked down at his hands. “No, no no no NO!”

“What—“ the voice coming from my mouth sounded strange. I put a hand up to my throat, and felt wattled smooth skin—

My fingers were chubby with extended nails painted a deep blue-black.

April laughed, but it wasn’t her normal laugh. It sounded deep, like the person who normally used it was used to a deeper voice and using April’s voice instead.

“What the hell happened?” I said, and I heard Desdemonia’s voice coming from my mouth. I struggled to get up with her overweight body. I rolled into a sitting position.

‘April’ looked at me. “I take it you’re not Desdemonia.”

“No, I’m Seth!”

April chuckled again. She held out a hand and helped me as I floundered up to my feet.

“This is rich.” April glanced down at her breasts and took them in her hands. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

“But who are you then?”

“Ernest Langmore, of course,” April’s body said.

“Then who are you?” I looked at Brother Langmore.

“Desdemonia! You’re in my body!”

“Wait, if you’re Desdemonia, and you’re Brother Langmore, where’s April?”

We looked at the snarling snapping werewolves slowly rotating in front of us. One of them was my body in werewolf form, one was definitely Pete Vargas, and the smaller one was my father. I’d seen his werewolf form also. The twisted inhuman characteristics of human and wolf blended together into supernaturally strong creatures with burning eyes.

“I’m not sure which one is which,” Minnick said. “But I guess it doesn’t matter. They’ve all fully changed.”

“No!” I said. “That can’t be true!”

Minnick shrugged. “Unless you can see the entanglement, I think it is. They’ve shifted without the power of the moon, which means they’re trapped in Werewolf Form. You know the rules, Seth.”

I closed my eyes, and opened my third eye. Amazed at how easy it was, I glanced around the area. The pink aura of April centered on my werewolf body. The other two must have been my father and Pete, probably in each others’ werewolf body.

The entanglement, the Witch’s knot, was gone.

I was trapped as Desdemonia Landcaster!

The Wolves were brought to the racquetball courts inside the sports complex. Miss Minnick assigned each wolf one of the courts, and the door was shut and locked until something else could be done with them. She returned to her teacher form after, and thanked the staff of the sports complex.

“Do not open those doors for any reason,” she said. “We will return for them in a couple of hours after we’ve taken care of the rest of the victims.”

Insane with fury, the wolves ran around the court, hurling themselves against the thick glass. Saliva mixed with blood as they attempted to penetrate the walled enclosure.

“Let’s get you examined,” Miss Minnick said, leading me away. An ambulance had pulled up in front of the complex, and Miss Minnick led me to the back where ‘April’ and ‘Ernest’ had just been examined. A technician bandaged a scrape along my jaw, and gently cleaned my elbows where I’d apparently fallen in the conflagration. Luckily, Desdemonia’s subcutaneous fat had cushioned my fall. My hair was in crazy disarray with leaves, twigs, and other detritus caught in Desdemonia’s hair spray. I attempted to pat it back into place but had no idea what or how to fix it.

“Other than the obvious translocation, you are physically okay?” Miss Minnick said.

I nodded. Every motion felt strange, with parts of my body jiggling and wiggling to every motion. “What happened?”

“The magical pressure must have been greater than anticipated,” Miss Minnick said. “It created a rather dramatic corporeal translocation event with anyone in contact with the two of you.”

I held my head. It throbbed with pain behind my eyeballs. “My head hurts.”

“A side effect of the translocation,” Miss Minnick said. They got me some pain relievers and I swallowed them with a cup of water. Even those simple motions were strange and new, like I was having to learn to operate my body again.

“What happens now?” I said. My voice was a croak. I was so tired and sore.

“Well, it appears the emergency of the conjoining has been relieved for now. I suggest you go home and get some sleep. You’ve been through a traumatic event.

I looked down at my arms, and shook them a little. Desdemonia’s bracelets jingled in response as the fat wobbled back and forth.

I closed my eyes, Desdemonia’s eyes. They were heavy and thick with the mascara and I could actually see my eyelashes. “This is going to take some getting used to—“

“Your friends can help you,” Miss Minnick said. I looked up. Mitzy Butterfly and Jeff Farnum both waved at me from behind police tape. I nodded.

A woman approached me wearing a regal purple robe and staff. “Desdemonia?” she said. She appeared in her late forties.

I shook my head.

“Desdemonia Landcaster has been involved in a corporeal translocation event,” Miss Minnick said. “Until all parties can re-orient, I will ask you to give her some space.”

The woman’s eyes widened. “Is that true?”

I nodded, “Yes.”

She looked panic-stricken. “Then where, or who exactly is Desdemonia?”

Woman, I thought. That now applies to me. She, her, Ms…God, was Desdemonia married? April must have a father. I tried to remember from our dates if she’d ever spoken about him.

“Am I married?” I said. The two women looked back at me.

“No, dear,” the woman in the purple robe said. “You’re my life partner. Well, Desdemonia is. Please, where is she now?”

Miss Minnick led the woman away. I heard her cry out in pain and sorrow as ‘Brother Langmore’ took her into his wide arms. I winced, feeling the throbbing of my own head as I walked to Mitzy and Jeff.

“Um…Seth?” Jeff said. “Is that really you?”

“Yeah, man,” I said. “Long story.”

“How do we know someone isn’t playing an evil trick on us?” Mitzy said.

“Miss Minnick said they’d had a body swap, is why.”

I stumbled in Desdemonia’s shoes, and they both caught me under the armpits.

“Can you take me home?” I said. My head was fuzzy and throbbed with each step.

“On level 32 of Enemy Mine, as your entering the Lair of the White Worm, who do you meet?” Jeff said.

I winced. “Level 32…” I thought about it. Enemy Mine was an old old game we’d played when we were in Junior High. I remembered Lair of the White Worm, it was deceptively difficult because the first thing you had to overcome was—

“Two-Face Mcgee,” I said. “And you got killed like fifteen times before you finally overcame the Lair and took the Scepter.”

“Nine times!” Jeff said.

“Bullshit,” I responded as they both helped me to Jeff’s Scout.

It took me a few tries to get into the passenger seat. Desdemonia had zero upper body strength and I was so sore, tired, and confused they had to push my fat ass into the passenger seat. Mitzy climbed in next to me, and Jeff got into the driver’s seat.

I heard the final bell ring as the rest of the student body of High Valley High came streaming out of the main doors. Jeff fought with the standard transmission and we jerked forward.

“Jesus,” I said, wincing. “Can you take it easy? My head feels like it’s going to roll off.”

Mitzy snuggled up next to me. “Is that really you in there?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

“Thank God you didn’t get trapped as a feral. They said it was really April in the feral wolf form?”

I nodded as I felt I felt a lump rise in my throat. April. She really didn’t deserve what had happened to her. Sure she’d been a bitch, but in a lot of ways, she’d been less in control of the situation than I had.

It was all too much. Tears fell from my eyes, and soon as I was sobbing old lady sobs. “There wasn’t anything I c.c.could do!”

“Hey,” Mitzy took my hand. “We are going to get you out of there.”

I nodded. That wasn’t the point.

I’d loved April. Love April, current tense. She didn’t deserve to be a feral wolf. But what did it matter if this Who or whatever came through the gate? Could it come through the gate now, if the Key had been taken out of the equation? Was that one minor benefit at least?

And my father. He’d been so careful about our were curse. Rules layered on rules. We had a cabin up north where we spent our time every month. It was in the deep wilderness, only accessible by helicopter. I thought about the feral burning red eyes as it hurled itself again and again against the glass of the racquetball court. There’d been zero intelligence there, just the ferality of the Wolf struggling to break free and consume everything in its path.

I sighed, struggling to get myself under control. Mitzy handed me a tissue, and I blew my nose, but couldn’t stop sobbing.

They got me to the house and up the stairs.

“Um,” Mitzy said softly. “Hon, you need to shower before getting in bed.”

I frowned. “Why?”

“You have stuff in your hair, and you need to remove your makeup. Otherwise your skin will suffer.”

I sighed and nodded. I needed to use the restroom anyway.

She helped me into the restroom. “Do you need help removing your clothes?”

I shook my head. “I can take care of it.”

Needing to use the commode, I quickly disrobed and sat down. Everything felt different down there, and I was soon releasing and feeling some relief. I turned the shower on hot, then eased myself in.

We still had some of Mom’s shampoo in the little basket beside the tub. I soaked myself good and long, letting the heat and water sluice away the shame, guilt, and pain.

Toweling off, I tried not to notice my new curves and additions. It was going to be a problem, however, as I had nothing to wear, and none of Mom’s clothes would fit this flabby body. I put on one of dad’s robes that at least covered most of my flesh, and slid under the covers. I was quickly asleep.

The alarm woke me the next morning. At first everything felt strange and weird, but then the events of the previous day filtered in.

Sighing, I got up. My headache had gone away and at least I was thinking a bit clearer.

Pulling on my dad’s robe, I realized I was going to need to do something about the clothing situation and quickly. Jeff usually picked me up for school. I glanced at the clock, and went into the restroom.

My hair was a matted disarray. I tried to comb through it, but only made things worse. My skin of my face was blotchy and had sun spots. I wished I had Desdemonia’s magic, she probably just poofed herself into perfection each morning.

I was finally able to wrangle the hair into a workable ponytail, and found some of mom’s sweats that weren’t too tight. I’d just put on Desdemonia’s heeled shoes when I heard the horn honk outside.

It felt strange going to school in my ex-girlfriend’s Mother’s body. I levered myself up into the passenger seat. Mitzy threw her arms around me. “How was your night?”

“Slept,” I said. “Long and hard.”

“Hah, I bet,” Jeff said. “Did you at least feel yourself up?”

“Don’t be crass,” I said.

Wait, where had that come from? I remembered Desdemonia had used the phrase yesterday.

“Uh, okay, Grandma!” Jeff laughed, as he pulled the Scout into traffic.

Frowning, I crossed my arms. Why was he being so insufferable?

“So you’re going to school like nothing happened?” Mitzy said.

“I suppose,” I said. “I left my backpack and all my homework there yesterday.”

“I grabbed it for you Bro, er…Girl.” Jeff said. “In the back.”

“Thanks, man.”

I thought about the upcoming day. I had homework assignments due in three classes, a quiz in one class, and we were supposed to have an intersquad practice game that afternoon. I guess I wouldn’t be playing third base anytime soon.

I sighed, and felt like I was going to cry again.

As if reading my thoughts, Mitzy hugged me again.

“Did you hear anything about where they put Dad, April and Pete?”

“Wolf rescue from Jonesburg,” Jeff said.

I nodded. It was the usual pattern with feral werewolves. If they couldn’t learn to socialize with other werewolves and be accepted into a pack, they’d be put down. I thought about the way dad had thrust himself over and over again into the glass and sighed.

“Do you want to go visit them?” Mitzy said.

“I don’t know,” I said.

“It might be nice for April to see her mother’s face again.”

“Do you guys want to?”

Jeff shrugged. “I’m down with a ditch day. It’s Friday anyway, most of my classes will be watching movies.”

“Okay,” I said, feeling a bit better.

The drive to Jonesburg took less than an hour. It was a mountain town near where our cabin was, actually. The wolf rescue was on the outskirts of town and had been a former logging mill that had been converted into pens. Wolves howled and snarled as we parked. We got out of the Scout, and I immediately needed to use the restroom again.

I made it to the front desk and while they talked to the staff, I scooted to the Ladies room.

Lady, another new term that applied to me. I sighed and entered one of the stalls.

After taking care of business I looked at my appearance in the mirror. I really needed some makeup, or at least some lipstick if I was going to be presentable. I also ran my fingers through my streaked hair and attempted to arrange it a bit neater than it had been.

I found Mitzy and Jeff at the door to the pens, waiting for me with wide eyes.

“What?” I said.

“Um…” Jeff said.

“Seth…there’s been another change,” Mitzy said.

“What do you mean?” I looked out into the pens. I saw several wolves, and another section for werewolves. The twisted, feral, supernaturally strong werewolves snarled and roared with glowing eyes of different colors. I walked past several werewolf pens. I found my father’s werewolf form, with burning chrome colored eyes and black pelt mixed with silver. It ran around and around and around in a circle, sometimes hurling itself against the heavy iron cage.

I reached the end, but didn’t see Pete or my Werewolf forms anywhere.

“Where are they?” I said. “Did they take them to a different rescue?”

“Um, no?” Mitzy said, pointing.

She pointed at a different enclosure within the wolf section.

“Wow, did they already calm down?” I said, walking the pen. Two wolves lay against each other, one a mixed white and reddish brown and the other a darker brown mixed with white. They were wolves though, not the supernaturally strong human/wolf mix that I’d been. These were two larger than normal wolves, quadrupedal, heavy fur, long snout…no human features whatsoever.

“Is April and dad in with those two?”

“That is your dad and April, Seth,” Mitzy said.

The two animals saw us and struggled up to their feet. The larger dark brown mixed with white wolf licked the rust colored wolf on the cheek. They trotted over to us.

It dawned on me as the rust colored one approached. Both wolves chuffed at us, and their tails began to wag.

“Wait..that can’t be…”

“After they calmed down and a night of sleep, they’ve become gray wolves,” a staff member behind us said. “We’ve never seen that happen before.”

The rust mixed with white wolf stood up with it’s forepaws on the chain link gate in front of us. It’s tongue lolled out of it’s mouth and it gave a friendly bark as it’s tail wagged.

“April?” I said, leaning down to stroke the wolf’s pelt through the gate.

The tail began to wag faster and faster. It whined softly.

“Aww, I think you can go in for a visit,” the staff member said. “Just be careful of her mate.”

“Her…mate?” I said, looking at the darker wolf. It gave a little bark followed with a growl as if in warning.

“Dad?” I said.

The other wolf’s tail began to wag too. But it was in a more mechanical fashion, and it did not whine like the smaller wolf. Under it’s torso I could see a male sheath.

“Yep, they mated last night,” the employee said, opening the gate and entering the enclosure.

Petrified, I stared at them. I realized that under torso was…nothing.

April was a female wolf.

Jeff and Mitzy entered the enclosure and immediately began interacting with April and Dad. Stunned, I walked a few feet into the enclosure. I couldn’t process what I was seeing.

From the tip of their quivering black snouted noses to their furred wagging tail, the two wolves acted exactly like the animals they were. Mitzy cooed over April and stroked her soft pelt around her head as Jeff petted the Wolf that had originally been Pete Vargas’s body.

I’d expected to see two feral werewolves like they’d been yesterday. Burning eyes, fingers into claws, and a mix of human and wolf into a deadly killer form.

Pete tried to interest the male wolf in a chew toy. It regarded Pete with a steely blue eye, and walked toward me.

“Dad?” I said, looking into the wolf’s face. “It’s me. It’s Seth.”

The wolf started sniffing me, and apparently understood what I was trying to say. It sat in front of me, regarding me quietly with Dad’s stare.

“April?” I said, looking at the other wolf. Her tail began to wag and she turned around and around in a circle, wanting me to pet her. I stroked her soft fur, and she licked my hand.

How could this have happened to you? I felt like weeping again.
…
April? I sent. Can you hear me?
…
There was something there. It wasn’t words, but something…I decided on a different tack. I sent an image of us playing on the monkeybars, laughing.

An image came back. I could see myself on the bars, but it was in black and white, and I couldn’t see April at all.

I sent an image of her as a young child, chubby cheeks with a little upturned nose.

This time what came back was the girl transforming into a little puppy in black and white.

April? I sent. Please tell me you can see this…

Nothing came back except a strange feeling.

I wondered if April’s original body would be able to communicate with her. I decided I’d try to bring the new April out here and—

“Hey, can we take them back with us?” I said to the attendant.

The man frowned. “I’m not sure. I’d have to check with my manager.”

“Can you, please?” I said.

“You won’t do anything stupid like let them out of the pen?”

“We promise,” Mitzy said. She’d found a ball and tossed it. April scrambled after it, plucking it up with her mouth and running back to place it at Mitzy’s feet.

“I’m kinda surprised she’s okay with you…considering.”

“Yeah, me too!” Mitzy said. “I figured she’d try to rip my face off.”

“You can understand me, though, right Dad?” I said looking into Dad’s stoic face.

The wolf raised it’s paw and set it down again.

“Wow, I think that’s how it might say yes,” Jeff said.

“One paw for yes, two for no,” I said.

The wolf regarded me quietly.

“Ask him something he would say no,” Jeff said.

“Will you dance an irish jig for me, Dad?” I said.

The wolf blinked, and yawned. It raised it’s left paw once, then twice.

“Yep, that’s my dad.” I said, smiling.

“April, can you understand me?” Mitzy said.

April’s wolf head turned in a quizzical manner and she gave a soft chuff.

“One bark for yes, two for no?” Mitzy said.

Again the wolf turned it’s head.

“You were a blonde in real life, right?” Mitzy said.

April turned her head again and chuffed, wagging her tail.

“I don’t think she really understands you.”

“I’ve been able to send images in greyspace, but she hasn’t been able to send normal speech,” I said. “I wonder if it’s related?”

The employee returned with a man dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and tie. “This is my manager,” the original employee said.

“Hello friends!” the manager said. “My name is Dale Berkson and I’m the manager here at Jonesburg wolf rescue,” he said.

“Hello, I’m…uh…Sadie, and these are my friends Jeff and Mitzy.”

He nodded to us all. “I understand you’re wanting to adopt this pair?”

“They were…well,” I said. I shrugged, no use in pretending. “This one was my father and that one was my ex-girlfriend.”

He nodded. “Yes, quite an exceptional case. We don’t usually see feral werewolves adjust to a fully canine form.”

“Any idea how it happened?” I said.

“We’ve watched the camera footage…” Dale said. “If you’d like to come inside, I can show it to you.”

“That would be wonderful, Dale,” I said.

Jeff and I followed the manager into the main office area. Mitzy decided to stay outside with the wolves.

“That would be wonderful, Dale.” Jeff said as we walked behind him. “Jesus, man get ahold of yourself, you're starting to sound like her.”

I winced and nodded, following the manager into his office. He stood in front of a monitors. An array of camera output stretched across the large monitor screen, clearing every few seconds and showing a different set of cameras.

“Let’s see, they were brought in last night around 4 pm…” He sped through the cameras, until he found the one where Pete’s body and my body were brought in animal crates. The crates were placed with their mouth to the pen, then the gate to the crate was triggered electronically. Pete and April leaped out of their crate into the pen as the iron bars of the werewolf enclosure slammed shut.

We could see them in feral mode, running and snarling around. They weren’t fully bipeds but they also weren’t true quadrupeds, able to walk or run on two or four limbs interchangeably.

“Yes, this is what we expected to see today.”

“Yep, the fun stuff doesn’t happen until right about…” he sped up the playback until it read 11 pm. “Here.”

The two werewolves had settled down. They were in adjoining pens, and they lay against the iron wall of the pen, with their backs to each other. They lay panting and huffing, their eyes closed, but it felt like they could come alive at any moment.

A soft glow enveloped April’s form, shortly after it stretched to encompass Dad’s body. We could see the changes happening, the shifting, the arms becoming true forelegs, the pelt filling in areas of the face, claws retracting into true paws, tails extending, and the face slowly adjusting from the feral monster into the familiar wolf face they now possessed.

They awoke, and immediately began pawing at each other through the enclosure walls. April whined, and attempted to lick my Dad, and my dad tried to use his shoulder against the wall to no avail, so he sat close and tight to her through the rest of the night.

“We felt so bad for them, we decided to allow them in one of the wolf pens early this morning.”

Collars were buckled around each animal, and they were leashed and led to their new enclosure in the wolf area. They pranced around each other, licking and pawing, obviously excited to be with each other. After a few moments, Dad bit the nape of April’s neck and…well, the rest of the footage was a bit x-rated.

“Okay, we get the idea,” I said.

“Wolves mate for life,” the manager said. “It would be cruel to separate those two now.”

I swallowed at that. “So…she could have…”

The manager nodded. “Yes, she’s a fully functional female canis lupus. We won’t know for a few days if she’ll have a litter, but the longer they are together…”

I swallowed.

“I’d like to keep an eye on them for a few weeks. Maybe a month to make sure the moon doesn’t initiate any changes back to their feral nature. I’d hate for you to take them home then be forced to put them down when the moon causes them to become feral again.”

I figured as much. I nodded.

“Plus, if the bitch is expecting, it would be far more humane to let them loose in the wild.

Furious, I was about to say something about that word, but then the door opened.

“Uh, sir?” an employee stuck his head in.

“What is it?” Dale said.

“There’s someone here who also wants to see the pair from last night.”

I got up and looked out into the main entry.

Ernie Langmore stood there with April.

"This is about to get interesting,” Jeff said, as we left the manager’s office.

‘April,’ wore a gingham dress. Her hair had been tamed into a long braid, similar to the one I’d worn yesterday. She wore no makeup, and had tennis shoes that looked a bit too large.

‘Ernest’ had fared a bit better in the clothing department. He wore a brown suit with a white shirt. His teeth looked less yellow than they had yesterday and he’d shaved both his head and his face.

“Desdemonia,” Ernest said upon seeing me. “My old Nemesis.”

“Oh, cut the crap. Everyone here knows what happened,” I said.

“I want to see my daughter,” Desdemonia said. “They said she was here?”

I nodded. “There’s been a bit of a development,” I said.

After taking them out to the wolf enclosure and telling them everything that happened, Desdemonia looked stunned.

“Are you able to communicate with her, at all?” I said.

Desdemonia shook his head. “No, but Elder Langtree’s greyspace is different from mine.”

“I noticed.”

“I can’t talk to her either, Mother.” Langtree said with April’s light voice.

“Oh, cut the crap,” Desdemonia and I said at exactly the same moment. Then we burst out laughing.

“You two are scaring me,” Mitzy said.

It was the first time I’d laughed since being thrust into this body. It felt good to laugh again, and I savored it a few moments.

“Feels good to laugh,” Desdemonia said after examining the pair in greyspace.

I nodded, suddenly biting back tears again.

“So my daughter is trapped as a female wolf mated to your father who is trapped as a male wolf.”

“Unless we do something about it,” I said.

Desdemonia shook her head. “Open your third eye.”

I closed my eyes and Desdemonia did the same. He took my hand in his. You can see this, no?

Yes, I replied.

Tell me what you see around them.

I examined the wolves with my third eye. I could see a white aura surrounding them both, connected together.

White aura. Connected.

Yes. Look at the other wolves.

I cast my Sight into the other pens. They all looked similar with white auras. Some were connected to others, some to many others, but they all had similar white auras.

White auras. Connected to others.

Yes.

What does it mean?

What color was April’s aura yesterday.

I frowned remembering. Pink, even though she was in my body.

What color is yours, even now?

Orange, I sent.

And mine?

I looked over Elder Langmore’s body. The aura was dark blue mixed with black.

Dark blue mixed with black.

And Langmore?

I examined him with my inner sight. April’s body usually had a lovely pink aura when April was in it. Now it was black as pitch.

Black, completely.

This is what happens when you accept black magic completely for many many years. The original aura is lost. Mine will become black as well in the coming years.

But what does it all mean?

She sighed and spoke aloud. “April is lost. So, unfortunately, is your father.”

“I don’t understand.”

“They no longer have a human aura in any sense. If we were to perform a translocation now, it would result in a mindless automaton. An animal cannot animate a human body. Believe me, it’s been tried.”

“Yep, yep!” Ernest said, after playing with April. He tossed a ball again, to have her dash after it. My dad also was beginning to show interest in the ball.

“What about Pete?” I said.

“Well, you tell me,” Desdemonia walked over to the Werewolf pens. Werewolves of all shapes an sizes leaped against the iron walls slats of their cages with feral glowing eyes.

I paused in front of Pete’s cage as he snapped and snarled in my Father’s original Were body. Closing my eyes, I entered greyspace.

The werewolves all had auras. Pete’s was a deep red, but other werewolves were green, blue, yellow, the works.

“They all have auras,” I said.

“Yep, so if they were translocated, there’s a remote possibility their mind might be able to be stabilized, but it will never be ‘Pete’ again, it would be someone new.”

I felt the beginnings of a headache again. “Oh, it’s all so confusing,” I said.

Desdemonia put a hand on my shoulder as we walked back to the wolves. Mitzy, Jeff and April were all now playing with both wolves. Jeff had finally got my dad interested in a rubber yoke and was engaged in a rather fierce tug of war. Mitzy and Ernest laughed and chased April in a game of tag.

“If it weren’t for the dire situation, I’d almost find this charming,” I said.

“Let’s go sit on the bench in the office area and let the children play, dear.” Desdemonia said. “We have things to discuss.”

I nodded, and gratefully made my way inside. It had gotten chilly outside and I hadn’t worn appropriate clothing.

“I take it this establishment wishes to monitor them for some time before releasing them to be adopted or into the wild?”

“They told me wolves mate for life,” I said in a shaky voice. “And yes, they want to make sure the lunar cycle is broken.”

“Oh it is, but I can understand their concern.”

I began to cry again. Desdemonia put his arm around me.

“Does your wife need anything?” one of the workers said. “I could bring her some tea, or coffee?”

“Tea would be wonderful,” Desdemonia said.

I finally collected myself and the young woman brought me a cup of tea. That sounded delicious, and I poured in two sugars and a bit of cream before sipping it slowly. It warmed my insides up, and I immediately felt better.

“I loved tea,” Desdemonia said.

“You didn’t want a cup?”

He winced. “Something about it doesn’t sit right anymore.”

I nodded, taking another sip. It shouldn’t sit right with me either, but hey, when in Paris.

“So,” I said, afraid to ask this question. “Is this forever?”

Desdemonia smiled. “Nothing is forever in the world of magic, dear.”

“I know you were getting ready to move into April’s body,” I said. “I find that detestable.”

Desdemonia sighed. “Yes, well, that was years in the making.”

“So you’re not going to try to take her body now?”

“I know you’re new to magic and magical entities,” Desdemonia said. “What happened yesterday…well, was a magical event without equal. I’ve been alive almost four hundred years and I’ve never witnessed something like that. Ernest has been alive almost two thousand years and never witnessed such a cataclysm of wild magic.”

“Is it due to the Who, or whatever you were all talking about?”

“Possibly,” Desdemonia said in a thoughtful voice.

“You didn’t answer my question,” I said.

“First,” Desdemonia said. “Even if I wanted to take her body I couldn’t. Ernest is quite happy being a young eighteen year old woman. It’s a perfect result for him.”

“And he’d need to give you permission?”

He nodded. “Yes. But not only that, it would take weeks of preparation. Translocation is not something that can be accomplished like what happened yesterday. That’s the amazing thing about that event. It’s also why I can’t just snap my fingers and put my daughter back in her body. It takes weeks, and that’s with a willing participant.

“And with an unwilling?” I said.

He shrugged bony shoulders. “Months, years, decades, eons. It depends on the situation. Months if the person who is unwilling is non-magical, years if they have a minimal of magical talent, decades if they are even of moderate talent, and eons if they are as strong or nearly as strong as I.”

“And Elder Langtree is strong?”

“Oh yes.”

I thought about that. “So we’re stuck then.”

“I didn’t say that. I just said I can’t easily take April’s body as my own.”

“So what are we going to do?”

“You and I could swap, for one thing.”

I looked at his tall thin elderly body. I mean, being in Desdemonia was one thing, but at least she looked a bit healthier than Elder Langtree. I couldn’t imagine being stuck in such a frail, old body.

“I wouldn’t mind being a man again, but—“

He sighed. “I am not much of that. I doubt this thing does anything other than dribble piss every fifteen minutes.”

“Right?” I said, standing up. “It’s like I’m constantly needing to use the restroom. Speaking of which…”

“I’ll meet you back here.”

After using the ladies’ room, I found Mitzy, Jeff, and Langtree had come back into the office area.

“We’re ready to go,” Jeff and Mitzy said. Jeff gave me a sidelong look at Langtree in April’s body and mouthed what the fuck.

“Let me go say goodbye to them real quick,” I said.

“We’ll be in the Scout.”

I went back to the wolf enclosure as quickly as my body could waddle. It was becoming easier and easier to operate this body, feeling less strange by the moment. I was disconcerted by what Desdemonia had said, and felt sad that April and my Father were trapped as animals.

When I got to the enclosure, they apparently were getting ‘busy.’

“Oh, ick,” I said, wanting to scrub my eyes out, and left them to their intimacy.

I made it back to the office area where Desdemonia had returned.

“April tells me the other children wish to leave,” He said.

“Yes, and I was going to say goodbye to April and Dad but they are…um, occupied.”

Desdemonia sighed. “Unfortunately, that just further seals their spirit into the bodies they currently possess. It’s too bad really, if April hadn’t caused the reversion into true wolves, we might have been able to revert them in the other direction.”

“You think that’s what she did?”

“Oh definitely,” Ernest said as we walked out to the parking area. “She probably saw the path to reversion but didn’t understand that instead of a human retro-action she was performing a Canis retro-Action. Given her dual nature, I’m not surprised she made a mistake like that.”

I thought about that. “Could we still perform a ‘retro-action’ on them?”

Desdemonia and Ernest both shook their heads. “Nothing to revert ‘t0.’ They’d need to have at least some humanity.

“But Pete?”

“We could possibly restore Peter to a version of humanity, but as I said before it’s very likely his mind has been torn by the nature of the feral Were.”

“My Dad and April’s weren’t,” I said.

“You stated the young one’s mind was inaccessible. You’ve managed to pass back some images and nothing more, correct?” Ernest said.

“Yes.”

“The feral conversion is incredibly hard on the human mind. It would be more of a justice to allow the retroversion into Canis, than Homo-sapien.”

I sighed in frustration as we approached the Scout. “I don’t know. All if it makes my brain hurt.” I stopped at the Scout where Jeff and Mitzy waited patiently.

“We still have a lot to talk about,” Desdemonia said.

“Not today,” I said. “I’m going to go home and rest. This has been a lot for me.”

“Magic can—“ Desdemonia started but I interrupted him.

“Magic is what got us into this!”

“Yes, and magic can—“

“Magic can take a flying leap right now,” I spat. “I’m going to go home and take a bath and hopefully scrub the image of my Dad screwing the person as an animal form out of my brain!”

Desdemonia waved his hands in a very Elder Langtree manner, and continued walking through the parking area.

I climbed into the Scout, and buckled the safety belt.

“That was weird,” Jeff said.

“Right?” Mitzy said.

I said. “In so many ways. And on so many levels.”

Mitzy put up a hand. “I’m sorry, I just can’t take that creepy guy inside April. She was bad enough to begin with, I hate to think what that creepaholic is going to do inside April’s body!”

I shook my head, putting fingers to my temple. My headache was getting worse.

“You okay?” Mitzy said rubbing my back.

I nodded, hoping my head wouldn’t roll off my shoulders. “Headache,” I said.

“Ohh, you poor thing.” Mitzy put her hand on my brow and started massaging it gently before moving to the back of my head and massaging where my head met my neck…or Desdemonia’s head met…oh, hell. I was getting tired of trying to work it all out.

“I actually said I’m going to take a bath,” I said. “It just sprang into my mind that’s what I need right now. Isn’t that weird? I can’t remember the last time I had a bath.”

“I think it’s a perfectly natural thing to want,” Mitzy said. “With some nice bath salts, some candles…”

“Ohhh, Marry Me,” I said softly.

She giggled and kissed my head.

I closed my eyes, and dozed as we drove back.

I couldn’t quite get the image out of my brain of the two wolves going at it in a loving way. It was almost as stuck as them fighting yesterday after the conflagration—

…The smell of rotten eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses. I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and—

I startled awake.

“Oh good!” A feminine voice near me said. “You’re finally awake!” Not Mitzy’s voice, and we weren’t in the Scout…

I opened my eyes.

April regarded me from about two inches away. “I was afraid you’d cracked your head when you slipped!”

“What…” I said, rising up and looking around us. We were in a…bathtub? I glanced down at my hands and saw—

My hands. Seth’s hands. My familiar, baseball-catching, essay writing, keyboard-typing male hands. Not Desdemonia’s chubby feminine fingers, my hands.

“What the fuck is going on?” I said, looking side to side. We were in an enormous tub with soft lights and music playing. I inhaled and smelled lavender oil and incense burning.

April gave me a small smile, just for me. “You slipped and hit your head on the tub, stupid.”

“April?” I said, unable to contain myself. “Is that really you?”

“Of course it’s me.” She slid her naked body next to mine in the steaming water. “Who else would I be.”

Candles upon candles were arranged around us. The tub was porcelain, the kind with feet. We must have been at her house because I certainly didn’t recognize it as anywhere I lived.

“Where’s Jeff and Mitzy?” I said, frowning. “How did I get here?”

“Awww, she kissed my nose. “You really did bump your head, didn’t you?”

“Bump my—“ I felt the back of my head, and dabbed at it. It was sore and I could see blood on my fingers.

“Damn, this is surreal,” I said. “April, how did we get here?”

“Well, after that terrible day we had, Mother told us we needed to consummate our love in order to release ourselves from the Binding.”

“And—“

She nodded, snuggling up to me, her hands traveling down there and giving me a gentle fondle.

“And we were able to release the binding?”

She nodded. “With the help of Elder Langtree and Mother of course. Wow, you don’t remember anything? I’m kinda hurt.”

“Was my dad there?”

She blinked. “Your father? No…honey, your father’s been gone for years. Your mother called you earlier though, remember? You said you were at practice—

“Wait, my Mother?”

April nodded her head, writhing against me. “Maybe I can figure out a way to jog your memory,” she said, and kissed me.

It was no ordinary kiss.

We made long slippery love…again, apparently. Hey, when life gives you a nubile beautiful young woman in a tub of hot water with all the right stuff in all the right places, you take advantage of it.

Afterward, we settled into April’s immense bed, wrapping ourselves in robes. She lit a one of her long black cigarettes, and smoked as we enjoyed the afterglow.

“Mother will be home soon.” April said. “But this is practically endorsed by her, so I doubt she kicks you out.” She handed me the cigarette, and I inhaled the tobacco into my lungs and immediately began coughing.

“Neophyte,” she giggled, wrapping her arms around me.

I thought about all that had happened in ‘my’ reality, the way we’d been so uncomfortable with the Witch’s knot. What had changed between there and here? We obviously hadn’t exploded. I wondered what had happened.

“April, this is going to sound really stupid—“ I said.

She looked up at me as I handed her the cigarette back. “What?”

“Is your mom still planning to take your body for herself?”

April tugged her hair back over her ear. It was an ‘April’ gesture I knew so well. She stubbed out the cigarette in an ashtray on the nightstand.

She sat up in bed, folding her arms. I could tell she was angry. Which meant…

“So it’s true?”

She nodded, tears slipping down her face. “Does this mean you’re going to leave me now?”

“What? No, of course not,” I said. “Why in the world would you even think something like that?”

She burst into tears.

“Hey!” I said, gathering her up into my arms. “What’s going on, baby?”

She shook her head and continued to cry.

“Is this why you broke up with me when we were freshman?”

She nodded. “I f.f.figured you’d never want to be with someone w.w.who gave away their future like that!”

I held her tight and close. “So when is this supposed to happen?”

“It c.c.could happen anytime.” She sniffled and I handed her a box of tissue from the nightstand. “She’s been preparing for months. It’s why I had to offload the black magic I was building up into you. I was hoping to extend it a little longer.”

I nodded. “So we got rid of one tentacular creature, but we have to deal with another one?”

“If you mean my mother, than yes.” She giggled.

“And it could happen at any time, without warning?”

She shrugged. “More than likely it will be when we sleep. We’ll fall asleep one night, and when we awaken, we’ll be in the others’ body. I’ll live out Mom’s remaining years as her, and she’ll be me.”

She held onto me tightly. “Seth, she really will be me. We’ve been planning this for years. She knows all my habits, and I know hers—“

I plucked the black cigarette out of the ashtray and held it up.

She nodded, blushing.

“You can’t be with someone as old as I will be. I want you to know that…that…”

She began to tear up. “Hon—“

“No wait a minute, stupid!” she inhaled deeply. “I give you permission to stay with her as April, and not be with—“ she burst into tears again, great sobs wracking her shoulders.

“Hey, hey. None of that,” I said.

“I’m hoping I can last at least until graduation, but every morning when I wake up I feel—“

“Like it’s coming closer?”

She nodded.

“Well, there’s no way,” I tipped her face up to look at me. “No way that I’d allow myself to be attached to a tentacular horror like your mother.”

“But, I’ll be the tentacular horror. Mom will be in me. She’ll be me.”

I shook my head. “Nope, I’m with you. All the way to the end.”

“But honey, what kind of future—“

“Hey, I’ve been accused of worse things. If being in love with a Cougar is the worst thing to happen to me in this life, I’m for it. Plus, you know, your mom isn’t so bad—“

I tickled her ribs. “She gave birth to you, afterall.”

She looked at me, her mouth open. “You’d really do that? Be with me?”

“Of course! What, did you think I’d—“

She threw herself into my arms, kissing me all over my face and mouth and eyes. She parted her lips and kissed me open-mouthed and sensual then, pressing her body to me in ways she knew I liked—

We made love again, and again. We fell asleep, exhausted and happy. I held her close to me as she slept.

***

The next morning I awoke to find myself alone in the bed.

I rubbed the back of my head where I’d bumped it the night before. It was so strange, I’d been with Mitzy and Jeff at the Wolf rescue place…

April walked in wearing a slinky black dress and with her hair immaculately styled into a dramatic updo. Her makeup was heavily done with blood red lipstick and dramatic long lashes outlined by azure and black eye shadow.

I blinked. “What’s the occasion?”

“Oh, I just thought I’d dress up today!” She twirled. “What do you think?”

“I think it’s Saturday.” I said, holding my arms out to her. She came to me, but turned her cheek when I went in for a kiss.

“Yes, yes. Good Morning, Lover.”

Frowning, I crossed my arms. She had never called me Lover.

In my life.

She wasn’t April.

I swallowed. Obviously, Desdemonia didn’t know April had told me about the exchange. Which meant, April was in Desdemonia’s body somewhere in the house.

“So what’s your mom up to this morning?” I said.

April was putting on some heavy jewelry. “Oh, you know Mother, she’s probably already at the pool with a mint julep!”

I nodded. “Hmm, swimming sounds fun.”

“Yes? Well, you’re more than welcome to swim, darling. I, however, have some errands to run in town.”

“You don’t mind if I take a few laps?” I said. “It helps with my conditioning.”

“Whatever keeps that gorgeous body of yours ticking is A-okay in my book!” she said, taking a purse I’d never seen before down from a shelf. She filled it with cosmetics, a checkbook, a phone — but it wasn’t April’s phone—and other sundry items.

“Sounds good, ah…lover,” I said.

She kissed me on the cheek with her cheek. “Kiss kiss!”

I said “Kiss Kiss,” back to her and she left in a swirl of perfume and hair product.

Sighing, I opened the curtains to make sure Desdemonia, because that was Desdemonia and not April, had definitely left. Her black Mercedes sped off with a puff of cigarette smoke out the window.

I walked around the house, looking for April. The Landcaster’s had quite the mansion squatting at the top of a hill. It took me a few rooms before I found the Master Bedroom. I knocked on the door.

“Yes?” I heard from the muffled interior.

“Uh, April? Is that you?” I said through the door.

“No!” she replied in Desdemonia’s voice. “Go away!”

“We talked about this,” I said. “The bag is out of the cat.”

“Just…give me some time, Seth,” she said. “I need to get dressed and stuff.”

“Okay, I’ll be out swimming.”

“Make me a mint julep!” she called as I walked to the back and the large pool.

I swam a few laps, then made April’s mint Julep. There was some fresh fruit already laid out along with some boiled eggs that I wolfed down.

About an hour later, April stepped out of the house and onto the porch.

She’d styled her gray streaked dark hair in one of Desdemonia’s twisted updos, and layered on the makeup but not quite as thick as her mother. She wore a wraparound dress with sensible sandals, and huge sunglasses.

“April?” I said.

She took a deep breath. “There’s something I need to tell you,” she said.

I nodded, feeling a strange fluttering in my stomach.

“Now that I’m…well, here. I have to act in a prescribed manner. Just as, um…my daughter must. Does that make any sense?”

I nodded. I was familiar with a geas and the effects it could have.

“Is that for me?” she said, looking at the copper cup in my hand.

“Uh, yes. Sorry. I know the basics of making a mint julep, but haven’t actually made many.”

She took a long sip, then winced. “Too much mint, not enough syrup. I like it sweet, Seth. Is that too much to ask?”

“No, not at all.”

She waddled over to one of the lounge chairs, and sat down.

Frowning, I was reminded of…it was so strange. I felt like I should be in that body, not watching it.

I sat down next to her. She took out a cigarette, lit it, and inhaled the smoke.

“You know, you’re uh…daughter is basically dressing and acting like you. Not uh…herself. If that makes any sense.”

“She created the geas so if she can get around it, I’d imagine, she will.”

“She left about an hour ago. She said she had errands in town.”

She tugged off her wraparound and sighed at the pudgy overweight body underneath.
“I am way to sober to deal with this today,” she said, taking another sip from the mint julep. “Want to join me for a dip in the pool?”

“Sure,” I said. I hopped up and stepped down into the pool quickly. The water was cool, but not cold. Definitely had a pool heater.

April took a step down, then another. She set the mint julep by the side of the pool. I waited patiently for her to acclimate to the water. She took a couple of more steps.

I took her in my arms. “Can I kiss you?”

She looked up at me with Desdemonia’s eyes behind dark glasses. “Seth, I know we talked about this last night but you couldn’t know that it was going to happen so quickly. If you need some time to—“

I kissed her, deeply. She tasted like bourbon and cigarettes.

We released, and I pressed my body fully to hers.

“Hah!” she said. “You just kissed my mom.”

“Quiet, you,” I said, and kissed her again.

…The smell of rotten eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses. I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and—

My senses returned. “Are you okay?” April said, in Desdemonia’s voice.

I blinked. Something wasn’t…right. I was still in the pool, still held her, she was still in Desdemonia’s body but…

We were almost the same height? That wasn’t right. Was she standing on a step?

I glanced down.

I was wearing a black one-piece swimsuit that was dangerously cut to expose up my naked but supple thigh. My breasts were high, yet firm, and I tasted mint julep in my mouth also…my arms were toned and very light. I could smell suntan lotion.

I glanced down at my hands. They were feminine with long extended nails colored in blue-black nail polish.

“What the bloody fuck?” I said, in April’s voice.

“What’s wrong?” she said. “I mean, past the obvious.”

I looked at Desdemonia… “April?”

She looked at me confused. “I thought we were past that point. I told you I’m under a geas.”

“Yes, but she was in your body this morning!”

“Seth, I’m confused. Did you hit your head again?”

I wasn’t crazy. I was in April’s pool wearing April’s body. Wasn’t I? Looking down I saw all the appropriate feminine apparatus in all the appropriate places and touching them gave all the appropriate tingles.

My head started to throb.

“I was just standing here in my body talking to you. Not your body.”

“That isn’t my body.”

I sighed. “I know that’s your geas or whatever, but it’s definitely not my body!” My voice was rising into April’s strident tones. I wasn’t liking this.

“Darling, your body transitioned the other day when we had that huge conflagration. We both sneezed and the Witch’s knot unraveled, leaving you with a copy of April’s body. Don’t you remember?”

I jumped up and sat on the side of the pool with my feet dangling in the water. “April, something is happening to me.”

“I’m not—“

“Oh for fuck’s sake!” I yelled. “That’s not important right now!”

She took a sip of mint julep. “It’s certainly important to me.” I heard tears in her voice.

Sighing, I shook my head. My head really hurt. It felt like I was going to get a nose bleed.

I jumped back in the water, and gathered her up in my arms from behind. We were almost the same height, so this was a little different feeling than when I’d been Seth.

I guess I was still Seth, just a Seth that looked like April?

“I’m sorry,” I said, kissing her neck. “Of course it’s important to you. I know it must have been very upsetting to find yourself—“

“In my mother’s body?” April spun on me. “Yes, Seth. It was!”

“April, what I’m trying to tell you is a few minutes ago when I entered the water, I was in my male body, not this body. Something happened between then and now!”

“I don’t know what your talking about. Ever since the conflagration, you’ve been stuck as a copy of April. Now I’m Desdemonia, which is the only thing to have changed in the last few hours.”

I tried to be patient, but my head felt like it was literally going to roll of my shoulders. “I know sweetheart. But something is happening. Yesterday when I woke up I was in your mother’s body and you were in my Werewolf body — well, you were a wolf, but had been a Werewolf, and…”

She shook her head. “I’m way to sober for this. Where’s the bourbon?”

I got out of the pool and snagged the bottle from behind the bar. I returned to find April, or Desdemonia I guess I should call her now, sitting in one of the loungers.

She took the bottle and drank quite a bit.

“Okay.” She wiped her mouth and smeared quite a bit of lipstick on her arm. “Is there any trigger to these transitions?”

“The first time I was in Jeff’s scout. And I started to get a headache, just like the one I have right now.”

“You have a headache?”

I nodded.

Desdemonia closed her eyes. “Oh shit!” she said. “There’s a tentacle wrapped right around your—

…The smell of rotten eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses. I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and—

A bleak landscape stretched below me. I’d appeared in a cave, next to some kind of rock formation. Green gases billowed around me, the stench of death and putrefaction made me gag.

A thundering earthquake shook the cave. Small pieces of rock tumbled from unseen areas, pelting me with fragments.

I ducked, covering my head. I saw something slither away with a whiplike tail and a mouth with far too many teeth. Where the hell was I?

Walking out to the mouth of the cave, the tableau of the land around me stretched. Huge cracks in the earth ran as far as I could see, which wasn’t that far. Gaseous emissions belched from unseen bilious rocky entrances.

An enormous screech like a thousand elephants all trumpeting at the same time forced me to my knees. A creature stomped around on the surface down there, a shadow in the greenish gloom. Ichor dripped from stalactites around me…

Or were they stalagmites? I never remembered the difference.

The head of the thing came closer. Burning yellow eyes regarded me from the elephantine face. Seven, no eight trunks or tentacles dangled from the front of the thing between immense elephant tusks of ivory.

I backed away from the thing into the cave. Hopefully the trunks couldn’t—

One of the trunks shot into the cave and snagged me by the ankle. I was hauled, unceremoniously out of the cave. I dangled, upside-down, up and over the thing’s head. It reared back, opening it’s mouth.

Inside I could see infernal fires burning in the pits below. Things — people screamed down there. I could see them milling around, caught in the stomach of whatever this beast was.

Fear burrowed icy fingers into my mind. Everything finally connected when the breath of the beast hit me.

I screamed, thrashing.

“No!” I twisted, trying to escape, my fingers scrabbled at my ankle trying to release it somehow.

Without warning my curse threaded it’s way through me. Muscles bunched as my face pushed out into a snout. Fur stippled the surface of my skin and my right claw swiped into the flesh of the elephantine trunk.

It flung me against the rock face of the nearest cliff and I scrabbled for purchase as I tumbled down the side bouncing and flopping hundreds of feet.

I yowled with each bounce, my feral nature forced me to turn in mid-air and I landed on all fours, leaping upward to avoid the mighty STOMP of the creature trying to annihilate me from existence. The elephantine head trumpeted again, and I felt the concussion of one of the trunks smashing against the rocks nearby.

I darted, leaping from rock formation to rock, trying to get anywhere else and hide from whatever the fuck was hunting me.

I dashed on all fours as fast as I could run, swerving to the left and right. I found a canyon that led away from the vicinity of the elephantine beast. My breathing stuttered in my chest as I inhaled whatever noxious fumes billowed from the vents that I could not get away from. Staggering, I coughed, trying to catch my breath—

But it wouldn’t come. Black dots invaded my vision and I slipped and fell on my side. My body slid through the dust, bouncing off rocks and long dead scrub trees.

Panting in the poisonous air, I roared in fury and futility, gasping and driving to move out of the way of the immense foot that descended over me, blocking out the rays of the twin suns burning in the heavens—

##

I awoke in my bed, yelling and thrashing in my covers.

Dad came in, the hallway light illuminating him from behind. “You okay, sport?”

Blinking, I tried to figure out where I was. “Uh, yeah Dad.”

He sat on the edge of my bed, smiling and running his fingers through my hair. “Must have been quite the nightmare.”

“Yeah,” I croaked. “Dad, can I have some water?”

“Sure, son. Be right back.”

He walked out the door. I leaned over and turned on my bed lamp. My clock radio glowed 2:00 AM.

I was in my own body, my Seth male body. My hair was back to it’s short buzzed length and not the curly locks from earlier.

Dad came back with a water bottle. He handed it to me. It was blissfully cool.

I took several long gulps, draining the small bottle in short order. The dream had been so real.

“Want to talk about it?” Dad said, sitting in the edge of my bed.

“Was bad,” I said. “I morphed in it.”

“Good thing that didn’t translate. We’re like three days from the dark of the moon.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yes, I think that’s on the 15th.”

“Today is the 12th?”

“All day.” He smiled.

I did some quick math. April’s nonsense had happened on the first, but to me that was only like three days ago. A day spent as Desdemonia, another as myself, then the third where I became an April copy…had my time on that planet/reality really taken up ten days?

My head thumped painfully. But for now, I was with my dad. He wasn’t trapped as a wolf, hadn’t poofed between dimensions…

“What’s going on in here?” Another voice murmured.

“Seth had a bad dream is all, honey,” Dad replied.

I looked up.

Look, I’m a big guy. I play sports, I date girls, I like fast cars. I’m a tough, strong, supernatural creature.

Seeing my mom again, standing at my door and I burst into tears. “Mom?” I said, running to her and enfolding her in my arms. When had she gotten so short?

She chuckled, wrapping her arms around my torso. “Must have been a doozy,” she said, smiling and patting me on my back.

I put my head in her hair and breathed her essence. She was warm, alive, here.

I didn’t know what was going on. Somehow I’d become magically entangled in something that was pulling me through different realities. They weren’t dreams, each one had been real, each one I felt pain, emotions, tactile sensations. When I’d been flung against the rock face, I’d had the wind knocked out of me. When I’d been in Desdemonia’s body, I’d felt her arthritis flare up in her back and hips.

Three days until the dark of the moon. Three days until the gateway opened. Three days for the nightmare to use me as the Key.

Dad got up and hugged both of us. I saw smile lines around his eyes, a lack of tension in his body, and his hair had actual gray in it from a normal happy life where his wife didn’t die of cancer and he didn’t throw himself into his work for 20 hours a day.

For one moment, my parents held me. I didn’t know how long the moment would last, or what monsters lay in store for me over the coming days. I didn’t know what decisions I’d need to make, what changes would take place, what dimensions I’d need to traverse.

For right now, I had my parents. Tears streamed down my face as I held my mother.

And it was wonderful.

We went into the living room and I told them everything. Mom was a Wytch in her own right, able to know the healing properties of any herb, tree, berry, vegetable, stalk — any growing thing. She healed the sick or wounded, provided relief to the infirm, and, well, grew, sold and distributed marijuana and psychedelics on the side. My father and she made a great team with Maggie Atkins sliding in with honey and James Atkins using the hammer.

Dad had apparently never become the entrepreneur in this reality; he still worked at the bank but was the region manager. Mom had a yoga/art studio she operated in town and ran her ‘other’ business out the back.

I’d never considered what mom did as ‘against the law.’ She was mom. The occasional raids that the police performed were all part of the adventure. Mom had several sources in the police department who would alert her when possible searches or raids would be coming.

“Desdemonia Landcaster?” she said when I got to that part. “That must have been quite the abrupt shift in perspective.”

“You can say that, again.” I said.

“Who wants pancakes?” Dad said, and Mom and I both raised our hands.

Around the kitchen table I related the events since the sneezes that shook the world. Ending with the strange other place I’d been and how I’d been stuck in Werewolf form but sill at the mercy of the elephant creature.

“Eight trunks, you say?” Dad said.

I nodded, shivering as I remembered how one of them had caught my ankle and hauled me upside down.

“The Hindu God Ganesh has eight arms.” He leveled some of his buckwheat cakes onto my plate. “I wonder if thats who you fought.”

“In Kama-Sutra, the elephant represents unrestrained raw sexual power,” Mom said, taking a bite. “Maybe this Witch’s knot caused some kind of a vortex between sexual energy and the energy of the multi-cosm.”

We both looked at her with raised eyebrows.

“Or not,” she said. “Eat your breakfast.”

“Anyway, the beast, or whatever, was just about to stomp me when I woke up here.”

The both nodded, looking down at their plates and not speaking for a time.

“What do you think it all means?” I said.

Mom smiled at me. “Not to eat tacos and pizza before bed?”

“Mom, I don’t think they were dreams. I think I’m literally crossing planes of existence. Where I grew up you died a few years ago from cancer.”

“You did have that scare, Margaret, you remember?” Dad said.

She nodded and touched a place on her breast. “I had that removed.”

“Maybe it didn’t get discovered in that plane, and…” Dad shrugged.

“I just don’t know what to do,” I said. “I mean, I was told that because I’m dual faction, that I’m a possible Key to the Gate, whatever that means.”

Mom nodded. “I’ve heard of it.”

This was news to me. “You know about this gate?”

Mom looked at dad, who gave a small shrug.

“He deserves to know, James,” Mom said

Dad nodded.

“We had hoped to keep all this from you, and have you lead as normal a life as possible considering the family curse,” Mom said. “You know it is not normal for factions to intermingle like your father and I have.”

“But other people have. Tommy from—“

“Different circumstances, but yes,” Dad said. “Since the curse went into you, and it didn’t appear you were powered, we assumed you were uni-faction. I’m thinking that the Landcaster girl might have unlocked your magical potential when she cast the spell on you. Your body reacted to the casting, by activating its own magical potential. I’m sure you’ve studied latent potential energy in your magical studies class?”

I nodded. “The potential for magical energy exists for everyone.”

“Yes.”

“The interesting thing here,” Mom said, pointing her fork at dad. “Is that when this sneeze catastrophe happened, the curse did not carry forth onto you in Desdemonia’s body.”

“It remained with April in your body, yes,” Dad said.

“April apparently used my body’s magical potential to retro change, but the wrong direction.”

Dad winced at that. “Yeah, that wouldn’t be good.”

Mom got up and sat next to Dad, wrapping her arms across his shoulders. “No retro-change for you.”

“If I’m ever caught as a feral werewolf, it would be a kindness,” he said.

“Are you able to open your third eye now, Seth?” Mom said.

I closed my eyes. All I saw was the inside of my eyelids. “Apparently not.”

“So in this reality you aren’t dual faction. Or your magical potential hasn’t been unlocked.”

“So does that mean we’re safe from the Who?”

“Didn’t say that.” Dad got up and started collecting our plates.

“You don’t remember what’s been going on the last ten days, I take it?” Mom said.

I shook my head.

“Magic, and therefore reality, has become quite unstable.”

“Oh?”

She nodded. “A lot of injuries due to inconsistent magical results. Potions I make are null, or their effects multiplied. Sudden appearances of mythical creatures…”

“Wow, like unicorns?”

She nodded. “But also wyverns, a hydra, a fire-breathing chameleon…”

“Wow, I’m glad you two have stayed safe.”

“Well…” Dad said.

“That’s why it was funny when you mentioned being stuck as a feral. Your father came too close to that the other day.”

Dad rolled his eyes. “I got mad at one if the branch managers and almost tore his head off.”

“Literally?”

He nodded, looking glum.

I wondered about Jeff, Mitzy and April in this reality. Were they still okay? Did Mitzy have to become her fool?

“I take it ‘I’ didn’t become April’s fool?”

They both shook their heads.

“What happened.”

Dad put a hand on my shoulder. “Seth…”

“Honey…” Mom said.

They looked at each other.

“What?” I said. “Tell me!”

“From what ‘you’ told us, toward the end of the day, April forced Mitzy to kiss her feet or something, and at the last moment slipped a piece of dog feces in place of her boot. Mitzy got upset…”

“And changed—“ Dad finished.

“Wait. What?” I said.

The both nodded. “We’ve spoken to the Bertollini’s…Mitzy has been taken to a butterfly farm out on Chesapeake road.”

“She became trapped…as a feral butterfly?”

They both nodded, looking sad.

Stung, I stared at the table. “Mitzy…oh my god.”

“You attempted to go in Mitzy’s place, but April refused.”

“I wonder if Desdemonia has taken her place yet,” I said.

“You did mention that ‘the bitch wasn’t at school,’ yesterday. So perhaps?”

I nodded. Poor Mitzy. She was such a happy person. To be stuck as an insect like that for the rest of your life. She’d been such a free spirit, so happy, such a good friend. I felt tears in my eyes.

“You can go visit her tomorrow if you’d like.”

I nodded. “What day is today?”

“Tuesday.”

Tuesday. I looked at the baseball calendar on the ‘fridge. “Tuesday the 12th…we play Montrose.”

“Yep!” Dad said. “I’m sponsoring the hot-dogs.”

“And I’m working the concession stand,” Mom said.

“How’s the team doing in this reality?”

They shrugged, looking at each other. “Oh…not bad. How were you doing in the other realities?”

“I’ve missed all the games this season for one reason or another.”

They nodded.

“Here too?”

“You..haven’t been yourself since Mitzy ah…”

I nodded.

Dad looked at the clock. “Well, it’s almost 5 AM. If you’re going to try to get any more sleep, this is your opportunity.”

“Yeah,” I said, standing up.

Both of them gave me hugs.

“Let us know if you’re going to be playing today, son.”

I nodded. “I will.”

Laying back down on my bed in my familiar room, I heard mom and dad speaking together in low tones, then soft laughter. It was such music to my ears.

But bittersweet music, as I thought about Mitzy. The whole reason I’d gone through the trials of April had been to avoid exactly what happened to her. The thought of that kind soul trapped in that body—

I decided I needed to see her for myself. I dressed quickly, then walking out to my truck and drove away.

Chesapeake road trailed east from High Valley through a slow canyon and up some switchbacks to the top of the rim. I knew the road from camping trips I’d taken with Jeff and some of the other guys when I’d been in boy scouts. The sun was just cresting the horizon as I drove over the rim. I could look down into High Valley from this vantage point and see the Mill, the meandering stream, and the town all laid out below me.

A dirt road led off across the top of the plateau, through trees, and out into a gorgeous meadow with a lake. I’d fished in that lake last year and caught some brook trout with Mitzy and Jeff.

The farm had an old barn that had been repainted to a bright green, and a smaller farmhouse that had been converted into an office area. Motor vehicles were not allowed past the gates, so I parked.

Another car was in the parking lot, which I thought strange. A black mercedes that looked incredibly familiar…

I hiked past the entrance and down the trail into the main area of the park. The Farm was setup to help establish and maintain the presence of butterflies in the entire region with a multitude of flowering plants available. They also had a caterpillar area, with thousands of chrysalis pods hanging from tree branches.

After hiking a few hundred feet, I came upon someone sitting in a lawn chair with an umbrella and a small table setup next to them with a bucket of ice.

Desdemonia Landcaster sat resplendent in a skin tight leopard print pantsuit with a black floppy hat and enormous cat-eye sunglasses. She smoked a long black cigarette as she drank what looked like to be margaritas.

“Hello there,” I said, approaching softly.

“Oh!” she said, getting up quickly. “It’s you.”

I nodded, looking her over. She wore thick makeup and her hair had been caught up in a hair net under the floppy black hat she wore.

“I assume that’s April under all that is Desdemonia.”

She started to nod, but something kept her head still. “No, I’m Desdemonia Landcaster, dark wytch of the first order and Vice President of the Magical Council of High Valley.”

“Yeah, I can tell.”

“How did you…um..know it was me?”

I sighed. “Let’s say I’ve been through a few different realities lately.”

She nodded and adjusted her fur jacket a bit over her heavy decolletage.

“Margarita?”

“No, thanks. Got tired of the Mint Juleps?”

She made a face. “I hate…I mean…I adore mint juleps at certain times, yes.”

“You know you could have just told me. I would have accepted this.”

She sat down, very quiet.

I looked at the butterfly enclosure. We sat in front of a rather large mosquito netting covering a number of smaller trees and bushes. Butterflies of all shapes, sizes and colors fluttered and flittered about in the dawn air, moving from one flower to the next.

About halfway back, an oversized monarch butterfly stood on a branch, with enormous wings that must have extended a foot to either side, slowly moving in the air.

“Hi Mitzy,” I said, waving.

Mitzy fluttered upward from her perch and came over to me. I could see the insectile head regarding me, long antennae tasting the air. I wondered if there was anything left inside there of Mitzy or if she was completely lost.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I did try…”

The butterfly fluttered it’s wings a few minutes, then flew away back to its perch.
“I…I mean, April didn’t intend for this to happen, Seth!” Desdemonia said.

I sighed, shaking my head. “Of course you didn’t.”

“It was just a joke!”

I looked at her. “If that’s what you want to tell yourself.”

“I never would have…I mean, my daughter never would have teased her like that if she knew she was this close to…”

A low rumble echoed through the plateau. All the butterflies scattered in different directions.

“What the hell was that?” I said.

“Temporal wave,” Desdemonia said. “They’ve been increasing in frequency.”

“What is that?” I said.

She shrugged. “A wave of chaos magic. As we get closer to—“ She cut off, sealing her lips. “Anyway, you might want to brace yourself.”

“Why?” I said. “What’s going to…”

The wave crashed through and over us. I felt my curse want to roar back in response, but I held it in check.

…The smell of rotten eggs. “No!” I said, trying to block it. “No, I’m not going this time!”
I thought about mom and dad, finally, together, happy in this reality. Sure, Mitzy had taken the brunt, but still, Mom was alive!

things decaying, and burning rubber flooding my senses.

Thunder echoed around us and a wind rose. Desdemonia’s hat flew off in a mad cacophony of wind and a spattering of rain.

I roared feeling the change wanting to overtake me. Desdemonia yelled at me, and I could feel her hugging herself tight to me as the gale swept over us.

“We have to get to shelter!” I said. She nodded, trying to wipe the onslaught of rain from her face.

We took shelter under the overhanging porch of the farm house. Desdemonia clutched her portly body to mine as the very air crackled with magic and energy.

“I’m sorry about Mitzy, Seth!” she yelled in my ear.

I fumed. “Little too late now!”

She nodded, shaking and cold as the storm raged around us.

“I’m sorry you’re stuck in that old woman’s body!” I yelled down at her.

“The geas lifted when the storm struck!” she said. “I can be myself at least for a little while.”

She clung to me. At least it looked like I wouldn’t be shoved into a dimensional shift again. The feeling had left.

“I’ve been falling through different realities,” I said. “I’m not the Seth that was here yesterday.”

“I know,” Des…April, said. “I was here yesterday too. You treated me like I was Mother.”

I nodded. “Why did you agree to this?”

She shrugged. “It’s what I was born to do.”

“So you’ll just live out the rest of your life like this?”

“Mother is already making plans for ‘college.’”

I nodded. “Well, I do hope you are happy with whatever you decide.”

She sighed and nodded. I felt started to smell rotten eggs again, and knew another shift was coming. If I could just control them a little.

The last time I’d been able to use magic was because April had cast a spell on me. I wondered if I could open my third eye again, if I could control the shifts —

“Hey, cast a spell on me real quick,” I said.

She blinked. “What? What kind of spell?”

“I dunno, change my hair color or something. Hurry!”

She waved her hands and I felt a tingle in my scalp. I closed my eyes.

Sure enough, I was finally able to open my third eye. I could see April standing with me, her aura pink mixed with blue and black.

I smiled. “I can see your aura now.”

“You can use magic?”

I nodded, feeling that strange otherwordly shift again. I wondered if I could get back to my original reality—

…The smell of rotten eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses. I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and—

I awoke, my head resting on some kind of vehicle door frame. We were moving.

Mitzy Butterfly smiled at me. “You’re awake.”

“Oh, and you’re you!” I said, wrapping her in my arms.

She frowned and looked at me as we screeched to a stop in front of my house. “Who else would I be?”

I was back in Desdemonia’s body, and it looks like only an hour or so had passed. It made sense, since *I* hadn’t been here to live the next series of events.

“What day is it?” I said.

“The fourth.” Jeff said. “We’re at your house, dude.”

April fourth. So I still had ten days. Ten days to learn as much about magic as I could. Ten days of attempting to control the waves of chaos magic flooding out from the Gate.

Ten Days to learn as much as I could about the Who, and how to stop it from coming through the Gate and creating hell on earth. Ten days of being Desdemonia Landcaster, before jumping back into one of my dual faction forms and somehow stop myself from opening the Gate.

Sure, easy.

I took a bath in the downstairs bathroom. Usually this was reserved for guests, but since Dad was…gone, and I was stuck in this older woman’s body, I decided to relocate to the guest room. It felt strange being in my old room anyway.

Mom had decked out the guest bathroom with bath bombs, robes, and candles. I filled the tub, dropped in a lavender bath bomb, then lit a few candles. Removing my clothes, I stared into the mirror.

I wondered if I’d ever get used to that visage. I sighed. Gone were my carefully created muscles, my tight abs, my defined pecs, biceps and triceps. In it’s place was a rounded wrinkled chubby woman.

Mitzy had smiled at me when I awoke. She was quiet, happy even now, human.

In exchange I’d given up thirty, forty? Years of my life. My father’s humanity, and the girl that I…what? Did I really love her? Or was she just an old obsession I once had?

I slid into the bath, moaning as the hot water loosened aching joints. Leaning back, I closed my eyes and drifted, letting my troubled thoughts float out of my head like a weather balloon.

I was hungry. And had a strange need for an alcoholic beverage.

I remembered the way Desdemonia had been able to conjure up her golden chair and mint juleps. Did I still have such an ability?

Deciding a small table near the tub could hold a sandwich and a beer, I pictured it in my mind. I flourished my hand and—

Nothing. I sighed. I wondered how she did that.

Can’t produce something from nothing. Came the voice of my Differential Equations instructor Mister Stewart. So the mint juleps, chair, and umbrella must have existed somewhere and she teleported it? Teleportation was a huge risk because if you didn’t do it just right the mass dislocation at the point of re-assembly could create an unintentional weather disturbance.

Seemed unlikely that she would teleport something so banal. She carried around a large purse, could it be a size differential? But that would require opening her purse, unless she teleported it—

My head ached. I’d finish the bath then make a sandwich like anyone else.

Desdemonia had been addicted to nicotine, alcohol, and probably other substances. My body craved them now, and had none of it available.

I tried to relax, but I found myself shaking with need. The headache thundered in my brain. The doorbell rang, and I almost jumped through the roof.

I pulled a blue men’s robe around me. It didn’t fit in the length but mom’s ladies’ robe didn’t fit in the breadth. I need clothes, a wardrobe…soon.

Ernest Langmore and April Landcaster stood in the doorway. Of course, they were really Desdemonia Landcaster and Ernest Langmore but who was counting.

“Hello Dear,” Desdemonia said with Elder Langmore’s thin voice. “We’ve come to continue our discussion.”

I nodded. I didn’t really want to speak to anyone, but maybe we could share notes. I held the door open for them.

“Goodness, you look a fright!” Langmore said. “Mother, you really need to instruct her on the proper way to be a Lady!”

Ernest wore one of April’s black lolita dresses with frills and a scarlet necktie. She’d adopted April’s heavy mascara and lipstick also, if more to the extreme. She wore white knee-length socks and black patent-leather mary-jane shoes that had been shined.

Desdemonia wore Brother Langmore’s usual brown tween suit and faded stained white shirt. His hair looked a bit more disheveled.

We went into the living room. “Can I offer you coffee? Or something stronger?”

“I’ll take a Dewar’s if you got it,” Langmore said. “Neat.”

“I find I don’t like Mint Juleps in this body,” Desdemonia said. “I’ll take a Dewar’s also.”

I rolled my eyes, and went to the liquor cabinet. I’d seen dad do this enough times, I could get through it. I took out two glasses and poured about two fingers of the whiskey into each.

I handed one to Langmore and the other to Desdemonia. Ernest took a sip, then made a face. “Ohh, no!”

Desdemonia cackled at that.

“Just give me a ginger ale!” Ernest said. “It’s going to take some time to build up a tolerance.

“Says the eighteen year old girl.”

“Hey, I resemble that remark!” Ernest said with a grin.

I sighed and poured some canada dry over ice. Then made one for myself also.

We sat down with Desdemonia and Ernest on the sofa, and I attempted to arrange myself on a chair.

“So…” Desdemonia said. “We are all very uncomfortable in our new corporeal iterations, I see.”

Ernest shrugged, and flipped a curl out of her face. “Not so bad.”

“Regardless, we need to discuss a path forward. We are known entities by friends, family, and the public and if we suddenly start acting unnaturally people are going to wonder.”

I could not get the belt of the robe to fit in the appropriate place without one of my breasts flopping out. It was driving me crazy. Plus I had the shakes, which made it all the worse.

“What are you suggesting?” I said.

“My desire,” Desdemonia said. “Has been to be encapsulated within my daughter’s body. It’s been a tediously slow process to train her. So to have this goal ripped from me, has disturbed me greatly.”

“You poor thing!” Langmore said. “Maybe this will teach you, finally!”

“Oh, spare me your sanctimonious speech, Ernie. We both know you do the exact same thing with your young boys.”

“They practically beg me to offer themselves. Unlike you.”

My headache thundered. I got up and found some acetaminophen in the drawer and at three of them.

“Regardless, this is the situation we are now in,” Desdemonia said.

“Even if I agreed to be returned to my body,” Langmore said. “It would take weeks to set it up.”

“And we have ten days at most,” Desdemonia said.

I nodded. “Well, there’s been a…development.”

“Oh?” they both said.

I sighed. Should I tell them? I hated the thought of dad being stuck in a wolf’s body, and hated the thought of Ernest being in April’s body.

“I’ve apparently been traversing realities,” I said.

“Do tell,” Desdemonia said, leaning back on the couch.

I related the events I’d been through up until that point. It took a bit, and I ended up pouring a glass of white wine to make it through.

“So now I’m here.”

“You were able to control your last reality jump?”

I nodded. “I had April cast a spell on me at the last moment, and was able to think about being in my original reality.”

“Well, that’s a step in the right direction,” Desdemonia said.

“These waves come more and more frequently. If I know it is coming, I think I can control a little about which reality I jump to.”

“The closest you came to the night of the soul?” Lanmore said.

“Three days away.”

She nodded, and Desdemonia also fell silent. They regarded each other quietly.
“The issue is, you’re no longer dual faction,” Langmore stated.

Desdemonia nodded.

“So I’m no longer the Key?”

“Oh, you’re definitely the Key. Why do you think the Who has been yanking you from reality to reality. It won’t let you go until the dimensions are no longer aligned.”

“It is searching for a reality in which you open the gate.”

“Is the Who that giant thing that chased me in Alpha form?”

They both nodded. “That dimension holds many creatures similar to The Who. They’ve eaten everything they can and seek weaknesses to exploit and enter another more fruitful reality. If it were to gain entrance to this world, many other types of creatures would flood this plane and consume everything.”

I shivered, thinking about the elephant-headed monster. “Why did it try to kill me while I was there?”

“Did it kill you?”

I shook my head. “Obviously not.”

“There’s no sense to what They do, or why They do it. I suspect it never would have followed through on the Death, but one of the things they can consume is fear. It made you afraid, and it consumed that as nourishment while you were there.”

“I gave it a banquet.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, I have ten days to figure it out.”

They both shook their head. “Oh, no. If you got within three days, that’s how long you have, dear. When the time comes, you’ll be sucked into that reality whether you want to go or not.”

I winced. “But I can’t possibly learn everything I need to know in three days!”

“That’s why we’re here,” Ernest said.

“I don’t even know where the gate is. How can I unlock something I don’t even know?”

“It’s a metaphysical gate, dear,” Desdemonia said. “A gate in your mind. It will use you to phase into this world, when it is ready.”

“And it already has you,” Ernest said. “You can control, somewhat, the location of each reality jump. But you haven’t been able to stop them completely, have you?”

I shook my head.

They looked at each other. “It’s only a matter of time.”

“I guess I just don’t understand,” I said, sipping some white wine. We all were a few drinks in and both Desdemonia and Ernest had relaxed a bit more.

“Consider the nature of the Universe. We are only one plane and exist here.” Desdemonia laid out a bony hand. “On top of us, is another dimension but it’s not at exactly the same time. There are dimensions that line up perfectly with our timeline, but there are also some that line up in in a perpendicular fashion.” He held up a hand straight up and down.

“So if I entered that one, and exited I’d return exactly to the same point.”

“Correct, which is why that happened with your last jump.”

“Other dimensions are at a more acute angle, or obtuse.”

“So some hours there could be days here or vice-versa, I get that.”

“So The Who, is yanking you from dimension to dimension, testing each outcome, then yanking you to another, then testing that one.”

“Okay.”

“Once it finds a dimension with the best likelihood of success, I suspect you will remain in that dimension until the Gateway is established.”

“But it can’t work in this one, right? Since I’m not dual faction?”

“The dual faction was only needed at the initiation of the contact. That has now been established. You are at its mercy unless we break that connection.”

“How do we do that?”

“Well, we could kill her,” Ernest said with a sly smile.

I shrugged. “If that’s what saves our dimension…”

“I think it will just find another Key, someone we don’t know, and attempt the same conditions.”

“It was just a thought,” Ernest said.

“No, we need to use this to our advantage,” Desdemonia said. “If we play our cards right, we could potentially save the dimension from ever having to go through this again.”

“Save the cheerleader, save the world,” I said, toasting them with another glass of wine. I was feeling delightfully sloshed.

“What cheerleader?” Ernest sat forward, suddenly interested.

“Just a reference to…nevermind.” I waved my hand.

“Okay, so, we know the ripples are going to increase in frequency, and we know Seth has the ability to somewhat control where she comes out. How can we use this information? Desdemonia sat back, and finished his drink.

“Tell me about these realities,” he said.

I nodded. “Well, the first one, April and Dad didn’t get trapped as werewolves, and she and I—“

“Yes, released the knot by consummation.”

“Right. And then the next day your soul transmigration occurred.”

“Oooh, wonderful!” he said. “I like that reality.”

I sighed and nodded.

“The next reality, you had transmigrated but my body was essentially a mirror of April’s. I didn’t spend long in that reality.”

“The snap back, yes. Interesting.”

“Then I was on another planet and there was this gigantic elephant-headed monster tromping around eating everything and trying to kill me.”

“The Origin World!” Ernest said. “That’s the reality all other realities have been spawned!”

I nodded. “Well, I almost got elephant stomped, but woke up just before it happened. In the next reality my parents—“

I got choked up, thinking of my mom and holding her. “My parents were both alive, happy and healthy. You had performed your transmigration and Mitzy had been trapped as a feral butterfly.”

“So instead of choosing you, she chose Mitzy. Interesting development.”

I nodded. “That’s when I tried to control the temporal jump. I wanted to be returned to my original timeline to give me more time to prepare. In that reality, the Dark Night was only three days away.”

Desdemonia nodded.

“That’s it. Four other alternate timelines.”

“And you, of course, favor the one where your parents are whole.”

I shrugged. “Actually, not so much. I stepped in this whole thing to be April’s Fool because I didn’t want Mitzy to suffer the consequences. So yes, while I’d love for my parents to be back, I find it’s more important to be in a reality where Mitzy is herself. That means I saved her.”

They both considered the information for a few silent moments.

“So?” I said.

Ernest stood up. She fluffed her dress and her hair. Desdemonia stood also.

“What?” I said.

“Stand with us, dear,” Desdemonia said.

She held out her hands. Ernest took her left and I took her right. Then Ernest closed the circle by taking my left.

“Lean your head in, until you touch mine and Ernest’s head.”

I felt a little strange, but agreed. We touched heads together.

Immediately, I felt a circuit close. It was like I was attached to a live wire. I could feel both of them as our consciousness melded together.

Emotions, memories, skills, all were passed around and absorbed. I was literally experiencing life as the other two.

A young girl, sitting on her mother’s knee as she drank the blood of one of her victims from an ancient bowl.

A young man, pulling the legs off crickets and throwing the body into a stew.

The girl, playing with a sister, taking a doll and setting it on fire with her mind.

The young man, filled with anger and resentment, at a military boarding school where he just arranged for one of his roomates to be electrocuted.

The girl, dancing with a boy at a school dance, leveling a strong love potion…

The boy, releasing the magic from an artifact to cause sickness at the boarding school.

The girl, using sex as a weapon with man after man, creating slaves that knelt at her feet.

The boy, forming a cult, becoming their leader.

The girl, the boy, the girl, the boy…images and knowledge passed, shared, and filled. Memories, feelings, all of it combined in my mind.

I tried to pull away, but it was useless. Soon, I figured out what they were doing.

Books, tomes read, research on The Who, facts, figures, dates, rites, ceremonies. Exploration to find a weakness, find a method of restraint, CLOSE THE GATE.

Realization: She is the key. I am the Key. We are the Key.

We pulled away, collapsing back into our seats.

New information, patterns filtered down into my mind. I felt very tired.

I yawned.

“So we are agreed?” Desdemonia—Ernest Landcaster said.

“We are.” Ernest—April Landcaster said. We’d made the decision in our inner space to stop referring to ourselves with who we ‘were’ and move forward with who we ‘are.’

I nodded, feeling sad. I felt like a part of me had been taken away.

At the same time, I had all this new information, knowledge and memories.

I had a plan.

Everything was going to be alright.

Night had fallen while we’d been in our strange communion.

Ernest and April left.

I found Dad’s keys to his BMW, and I drove up to the Landcaster’s. It was silly to remain in that house when a perfectly serviceable wardrobe was available. I went into Desde…my bedroom and shucked off the horrid robe. How had I allowed myself to stoop so low?

Sighing, I spread cold cream over my face, and moistened then set my hair in rollers. The old motions felt both familiar and strange. I donned one of my black silk robes, then relaxed on the divan where I mixed up an Irish coffee.

The girl had yet to return, but I didn’t blame her for wanting to sew some wild oats. If I wasn’t so old and flabby, I might sew some of my own. I sighed and lit a More 1000 and tapped the ash onto the carpet. Fool maid should know to keep ashtrays near all of my relaxation areas.

I sipped the Irish coffee and closed my eyes, letting the liquid warm me from the inside. Tomorrow I needed to check in on the Council and make sure no one had taken advantage of my recent incapacity to advance their own plots. The only plot we needed to work on was the return of the Old one. If it was going to return, it should have a group of acolytes ready, willing and able to kneel and worship. It would be my job to ensure we had as large a group as possible.

The loss of Jim Atkins on the Council would leave a vacancy for the Alpha Weres…I wondered who I could leverage to fill that seat. I needed someone that wouldn’t be as obstinate as Jim and would work with our cause and not against it.

Of course, with the return of the Old one, the Council could be dissolved. And now that I was the Key, I could ensure a smooth transition for mankind into slavery; at least for the non-magical. Perhaps the Old One would seek a Bride?

I blushed, thinking about it. Of course, mating rituals for an Old One probably were much different than modern rituals. Not to mention, I wondered if offspring from an Old One might eat their way out of their mother’s womb.

I shivered. No, I certainly couldn’t be a bride. But that didn’t mean certain members of the student body from that infernal high school couldn’t be co-opted to that cause. And we simply must have a number of sacrificial lambs to lead to the slaughter.

I took out a pen and paper and began jotting notes. First a number of students and townspeople who should be captured, isolated and prepared to become sacrifices. The second, the possible new Magical Council to act in an advisory capacity to the Old One, of course, ready, willing and able to lend a hand when needed. Third, I listed all the Alpha Weres I knew from Seth’s mind who might be able to be a part of the council but not as insufferable as his father had been.

I tapped a pen to the paper…hmmm. Jim owned a great deal of property in town that would soon be going into receivership. If done right, I could possibly be positioned to offer the considerable financial backing of Landcaster Holdings to absorb the assets. For continuity’s sake, of course, after all there were real people involved in each of those businesses and Landcaster Holdings could absorb the financial obligations and let people continue to work! Then they would be in debt to LH LLC, and in turn me. Mmmm, yes perfect.

The Old One. I had books in the catacombs beneath Landcaster Manor that might have more info. Ugh, they were, of course, warded and booby-trapped, keyed to my essence alone.

I sighed, I’d have to tackle those in the morning, after I went to the bank of course and ensured JAtkins Inc assets would be received appropriately. I’d need to look immaculate as well for that visit, which meant I needed a decent nights’ sleep.

I stubbed out the last of my cigarette, then turned off the lamp. Sliding between the silk sheets of my familiar bed, I felt my eyelids shut almost immediately.

“What can I do for you, Desdemonia?” Todd Zimmerman said, the next day. I sat in the offices of JPGoldman and Chase, attorneys at law.

“I’ve recently acquired some knowledge,” I said, giving him a little hand flourish and just the gentlest push of magical will into his mind so he wouldn’t even know. “That JAtkins Inc. Is currently without a founding member.”

“Yes.” Todd pulled up something on his computer. “Both Jim and his son are MIA.”

“There’s nothing to be done about Jim Atkins, but his son—“

I smiled. “Due to an unfortunate magical incident, his son’s essence and memories are now within me.”

Todd nodded. “Well, Jim did leave everything to the son, however, I don’t know how we’d prove this Essence transfer, as you put it, ever occurred.”

“There were witnesses, and I have several that can testify if need be. My concern is Jim…I mean…Dad’s businesses continue on their merry way and not have any hiccups in funding, rent paying, taxes, that sort of thing. Since I am in sole possession of Seth’s memories and Essence, and since Landcaster Holdings has the considerable financial portfolio, I would like to aquire ownership of all property and assets transferred to me.”

Todd nodded. “Well, there would need to be an inquest. And it’s been less than a week that Jim has been gone.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors of what happened, Todd.” I stood up and walked over to him, leaning down to whisper conspiratorially. “And I know you know how to expedite things.” I touched him softly on the shoulder, with another not-so-gentle push.

He was a tall man, bald, with heavy shoulders and in his late fifties. I knew he was attracted to me, and had been for some time. I leaned over, allowing my bosom to practically fall into his lap. “Can you help me, Todd? Or should I find someone else?”

“Um, no. I can get this done, Desdemonia.”

“Call me, DeeDee, sweet man.” I smiled, and touched him on the nose.

“Yes, uh, DeeDee, I can get this done.”

“Perfect!” I said, standing up. “When can I sign the paperwork?”

He shrugged, looking at his computer. “Uh, give me a few days?”

I smiled, walking toward the door. “Tomorrow afternoon?”

He rolled his eyes. “Yes, Desdem—“

“Dee Dee!”

“Yes, Dee Dee.”

“Wonderful!” I swept toward the door and waited for him to open it. “I knew I could count on you, Todd.”

He smiled. “And if you’d ever like to grab some dinner—“

“Oh, Todd, you know me! Busy busy busy!” I tapped him on the chest, and left the office.

Smiling, I made my way down to the car. Dennis opened the door for me, and I sat in the back of my limousine. I’d decided to go full out today and let people know Desdemonia Fucking Landcaster was back in town.

But a new and improved Desdemonia. I took out a cigarette and lit it, inhaling deeply. Dennis got in and pulled the Limo out onto main street.

“Where to now, Ma’am?” he said.

“Council headquarters, please Dennis.”

I felt a pang that I couldn’t swing by and get Cecilia first. She would be at the studio now, and I’d been neglecting her sorely, even as Ernie. But I had work to do if High Valley was to be the transition location for the next Old One.

I glanced in the mirror and patted my hair back into place. I needed to have it done, I’d decided I needed a new image for a new Desdemonia. No more dark colors and drab black and silver. The new DeeDee would be vivacious and bold, striding forward into the leadership position at the Old One’s feet.

Afterall, it’s not every day you usher in a new era for humanity. Bold leadership required bold sacrifice.

And I was just the woman to do it!

The council had gathered and were waiting for me. Two acolytes opened the door, and I smiled brightly at them as I entered the revered hallways.

Built on the ruins of an old Mayan Temple, the council chambers featured marble walkways, white pillar supports, arched room entrances and painted ceilings. I walked down the main hall as other council members and their attendants fell in step behind me. Judy Nissom, the leader of the Vampire faction gave me a quiet hiss as we passed into the darker areas of the chamber, letting me know she was in attendance. Balon Stamper, the ghoul, shambled up from the crypt beneath the meeting hall, his ever present stench of rotting flesh preceeding him.

Cecilia stepped out from an alcove, adorned her her customary purple robes.

“Hello darling!” I said, rushing to hug her. “I thought you would be at the studio today?”

She nodded. “I heard you called a meeting and came right over.”

I smiled, kissing her softly. “Aw, you didn’t have to do that, love.”

“It’s only fitting that I be seen at your side, isn’t it?”

Ernest Langmore, wearing his brown robe of office slithered out from another doorway. April, my daughter, fell into step beside me. Ernie gave me a wink. We'd decided I'd be the true Desdemonia now, and he would lead the brotherhood as Elder Langtree.

“What will we be discussing today, Mother?”

I paused, looking at April, the former Ernest. She’d been out all night and showed it. Her hair was a disheveled mess, her skirt had been torn, and her makeup…oh, she looked a fright. And she smelled of booze, sex, and drugs.

“Where have you been?”

She shrugged. “I went to a party at some…frat house, I believe.”

“You’re still in high school!”

“Mother, that was only for show, as you know and since I no longer have to worry about your attempts to take over my life, I decided to live it!”

I nodded and we all filed into the rotunda where we found our places at the respective podiums. The immense crystal of power hummed softly in the center. I walked toward it and knelt, giving obeisance to those who had come before me.

Closing my eyes, I knelt and murmured in the sacred language of the Dark Elders…

For mine eyes seek the truth, else I shall be blind
For mine ears to hear reason, else I shall be deaf
For mine nose to smell hope, else I shall be senseless
For the Power is One for ALL to share, else I shall descend into Madness.

The quiet thrum of energy filled me from the Crystal, and I closed my eyes, welcoming its power once again.

I waved for an attendant to help me stand again. These old bones weren’t what they used to be.

I waddled back to my podium, and stood. It was the highest, above the other members, as was right for my station as Presiding.

Holding my hands up, I invoked a spell of protection, warding us against eavesdroppers and sealing the chamber to those within. Any attempted breaches of the ward would notify me immediately.

“I call this meeting of the Council of Twelve to order this day, 10th of April, 2023.”

The audience and the rest of the Council fell silent.

“Commence with the reading of the minutes from the last meeting,” I said.

Lance Barlow, leader of the infernal’s began reading. His voice sounded like charcoal dragged across stone as he listed the events of the prior meeting. It took a good ten minutes of his droning on for the minutes to be completely read.

“Does anyone have any objection to approving the minutes as read?”

The rest of the council shook their head.

“Um, Madam President, a few corrections—“ Judy Nissom said. Before being changed into a vampire she’d been a parliamentarian in one of the English Colonies.

“Proceed,” I said, sighing.

“Comma after Remark in the second paragragh. Semi-colon after Ward in paragraph nine, 'Seeping’ is misspelled in paragraph eleven…” she went on to make various corrections.

After she concluded, I said; “Does anyone make a motion to accept the corrections to the minutes?”

“So moved,” Ryan Blackwater said. He was a wizard of the first order and probably the only other being in this chamber more powerful than me.

“All in favor?”

“Aye.” Chorused the group.

“Any opposed?” I said.

I waited for a moment, and no one chimed in.

“Motion passes, 12 to nil.”

Lance Barlow nodded, and made a notation in his book, then cut his thumb and pressed the blood onto the seal.

“Perfect. Now, on to old business?”

“Madam President, might I ask that we skip old business in favor of the new?” Ryan Blackwater said. “I have important matters to attend.”

“Is that a motion?” I said.

“So moved.”

“Seconded.” Julie Sternum said. She was the newest member of the council and a fae changeling. She had attracted the eye of many of the bachelors in High Valley due to her elfin features and light blond hair.

I liked her hair. She kept it in a delightfully short pixie that couldn’t have taken much care at all.

“All in favor?” I said.

“Aye,” said the majority.

“All opposed?” I said.

“Nay,” Lance Barlow and David Guggenheim said.

“We stand at 10 to 2. Aye’s have it.”

“I never win anything,” David said.

“On to new business then!” I said. I was glad we’d dispensed of old business, Seth’s mind didn’t have a great grasp of some events in recent memory and it would take me some time to get things completely sorted.

“As you know, we had quite the conflagration on the ball fields a few days ago,” I said. “Several council members were involved, me, Jim Atkins of the Alpha Weres, my daughter, and Ernest Langmore of the Brotherhood.”

Several people murmured at that.

“As a result, a translocation event occurred in which several members of the council were compromised. I count myself as one of that number, along with Brother Langmore. Jim Atkins ended up in a non-human body and is currently trapped as a non-sentient with no means of apparent escape, along with my daughter—“

At this I gave a slight catch in my voice that wasn’t completely faked.

Ryan Blackwater frowned. “I was to understand that Desdemonia Landcaster translocated into Brother Langmore. Is this true?”

I nodded. “It is, but we had a mind share last night and were able to come to an accord.”

Ryan Blackwater nodded. “So you are in full control of your faculties and Brother Langmore is in full control of himself?”

I looked at Ernest. “We are.”

“So what are you seeking, Desdemonia?” the wizard said.

“I’m seeking a vote of confidence. Knowing what you know about our translocation and some of the events that may come to pass, I want to make sure there is no doubt who is in charge of this council. If another president needs to be elected, now is the time to do it as I have some very pressing business for us and don’t want to address competency inquisition questions.”

“I care less for the management of this purile group. I have much larger fish to fry.” Blackwater said.

“I move we approve a vote of confidence in Desdemonia Landcaster so she can proceed with the rest of our agenda,” Julie Sternum said. I glanced over at her and she beamed a smile at me, her light blue eyes dancing in the flickering light from the crystal. Bless her soul, I thought. I wonder if she is corruptible…

“Seconded,” the Blackwater said.

“All in favor?” I said.

“Aye!”

Any opposed?

No one would stand in opposition. I felt a little rush of glee float through my belly.

I smiled at everyone in attendance. “Thank you all, for your vote of confidence,” I said.

“It gives me such a warm feeling to know you trust in me to be your president, and usher us into a new future.”

“Here here!” several members of the audience stated.

“So, on to our newest business, then,” I said. I approached the Crystal, and stood in front of it. Then turned around, theatrically.

“We are faced with an unparalleled decision in the coming weeks. As you all know, one of the Old Ones, the Who, stands at the Gate. It demands entrance into our reality, and due to the circumstances I listed earlier, I am now it’s appointed Key, since the Atkins boy discorporated his essence into my body.”

Murmurs rustled through the crowd. I knew they hadn’t considered how much power I actually had as not only the President of the Council of Magic, but the Key to the Gateway of The Who.

“Therefore, we have made the following decision.” I nodded to April and Ernest Langmore. They both stepped forward equidistant around the Crystal, becoming a triad with me around the crystal.

“As the Key, and President of the Council. Standing in front of the Gate of the Unknown. We will receive the Old One into our presence, and usher in a new Era for mankind!”

Several of the council members, including the Blackwater were standing now. I knew he would take umbrage at this, but now was the time for me to seize control.

“The non-powered humans around us shall be given to the Old One as sacrifice! We shall open the Gate and allow Him to enter! I am His vessel, His Key, His tool! Anyone who stands with me will be rewarded beyond imagination!”

I threw up my hands, and Ernest and April also threw up theirs. We murmured a quiet incantation that activated the Crystal, just not in the method it was ever intended. A scarlet glow began to emanate from it, and a force seeped out from the center, enveloping first us, as the triad, and then expanding.

“For We are the Chosen Ones! We will accept Its leadership and Guidance. We shall allow the Old One to consume the feckless underpowered humans on this planet, and We shall be ushered into the Kingdom of Greatness beyond!”

The wave of power slid out, faster and faster, enveloping those around me. Their eyes changed from blue, gray, or brown, to the scarlet glow of the Crystal, as their souls were conquered and conjoined.

With each person it touched, they immediately fell into a trance, murmuring a soft. “Ommmmm. Ommmmm. Ommmm.”

The Blackwater took up his staff, and I saw a branch of power leap forward, directly into the crystal. I cackled at this, knowing he would attempt to use force to overcome it. Shackles of red energy leaped from the scarlet crystal, and bound his limbs, freezing him as an automaton, like all the people around him.

“Brothers and Sisters!” I screamed, my own eyes glowing fierce scarlet. “We shall be the new Victors of this World!”

I ripped the staff from the hands of the Blackwater, and used it to send an intense bolt of energy skyward, allowing the clouds to gather, and the Storm to brew. The storm would power the spell, holding the council and anyone else it touched in thrall until I returned.

The Old One was coming.

And soon.

--------------------------------
If you enjoyed this please consider joining my patreon at https://patreon.com/rainemonday
Much of my work can be purchased at gumroad: https://rainemonday.gumroad.com

(Two chapters today so we can get to the end of this)

The next morning, I made a phone call to the hair-dressers. “Bonnie!” I said, in my most enthusiastic voice. “This is Desdemonia Landcaster. I’d like to book some time with you today.”

“Oh, Hi Ms. Landcaster! Sure, I have some time today. What do you want done?”

I put a hand to my head. “Oh, a brighten up, I think. What time can you work me in?”

“One o-clock work for you?” Bonnie said.

“That would be perfect, dear.”

“Just highlights like last time, or full color?”

“Full color, darling. I’m going for a new look!”

“Wonderful!” Bonnie said. “I’ve been waiting forever to brighten that hair of yours, babe. Come on in, and we’ll see what we can do!”

I smiled, and hung up the phone.

Cecilia murmured something under the covers. I caressed her face, and she opened eyes that glowed scarlet. “I’ll be back in a little while, pet.”

She murmured “Ommmm….Ommmmm….Ommmmm,” back at me. It was a good thing I could at least get her mouth to do something than chant, or it would have been a long night.

I put on an old black long cotton dress and comfortable shoes. The catacombs were dark and dusty so I pulled my hair up into a wide bun with a hairband and waddled my way down the back staircase to the catacombs. If there was anything anywhere about The Old One it would be in there. I had initiated the Hypno Virus in the event we didn’t have a better plan to stop it, but I hoped the dusty tomes might give me some information.

With a wave of my hand I cast an alight spell that brought the candles flickering to life. With a breath of wind, the hallways illuminated in soft yellow light.

I smiled. I wasn’t exactly Desdemonia, I was more Sethdemonia, but it still felt nice to be able to perform magic. It was such a lovely feeling, tapping into that unseen power, and releasing it to do my will. What many people didn’t realize; magic wasn’t difficult to use. What was difficult was not using it and keeping the order of the Universe in check. Magic bent the will of the Origin in ways nature never intended, so not using it meant the natural world kept spinning as it should.

I walked through the catacombs, opening ancient doors, and swiping my finger across hidden wards and booby-traps. No one had been down here in decades, and the dust triggered my allergies, causing my sinuses to fill.

If only magic had a way to alleviate a simple runny nose…I sighed.

The stacks were on the lowest level of the catacombs, and I descended the stairs carefully, my chubby arms handing on to the rickety railing that wound down into the depths.

Mold crept along the edges of the stone stairs, moist and thick. I was forced to slow my progress to ensure I didn’t slip and send my roly-poly aged body tumbling down like a boulder down a cliff side. All the magic in the world wouldn’t stop a conk on my noggin from hitting the rocky floor down there.

I finally got to the bottom, and lit the candles around the thick oak door that stood in the entrance.

This was the tricky part. I wasn’t exactly Desdemonia Landcaster. I was wearing her body, and had access to her mind, and had adopted her thought patterns, but the true Desdemonia was in Ernie and this trap might not recognize me for the person I was.

Releasing the trap was simple. There was a certain phrase I needed to state. The magic would categorize my voice, intent, and identity, the spring loaded lock would melt, and the iron rods extending into the door frame would retract, opening the door.

If the spell didn’t recognize me, hidden iron fletched bolts would release from hundreds of holes in the surrounding surfaces, impaling me with not only iron, but a special toxin I’d imported at great expense from Guatemala.

The mages of Hidden Valley knew I held these tomes, and many envied them, so I needed both physical and magical wards around them to ensure they never fell into the wrong hands.

Holding my hands up, I created a magical barrier then intoned the words: “By the flowers of Daerkne, I release thee.”

Closing my eyes against the possible impaling, I waited.

Nothing happened.

“You know, Desdemonia, I wondered if you might come down here.” A voice said, to my left.

Startled, I turned.

Wizard Blackwater stood less than a meter from me. He glowed with blue light outlining his form.

“What’s the meaning of this!” I said. “You were incapacitated by the—“

“I must admit, you caught me in your web for a short time,” he said. “Luckily, I have a certain amulet that resets my mental state if not activated every hour.”

I clucked at that. “Clever.”

“Indeed.”

“So did you release everyone?”

He shrugged. “No, I see what you’re trying to do and while ugly in its execution, I don’t completely disagree with it.” He moved toward the door, standing in front of it beside me. “Clumsy, yes, but mildly effective. The weak-minded will at least distract the Old One for a few moments upon entrance into this Realm of Possibility.”

I nodded. “So you laid a trap for me here.”

He shrugged. “Not a trap, per se, but I have always wanted to acquire these tomes, as you can imagine. What kind of wizard would I be without them?”

I shook my head. “They were never for your kind. These are Wytch artifacts.”

He smiled. “I’ll be the judge of that.”

“So what, you changed the lock?”

He shrugged. “No, it was deftly laid, Desdemonia, I do give you credit for that, or at least I credit the original Desdemonia…” he twisted his hands in a certain fashion and a portal opened.

Ernest Langmore stepped through, smiling.

“Ahh, I see. You’re in league with The Brotherhood.”

“I think we can agree that The Brotherhood, The Wizardry, and The Wytches should share knowledge and power in order to achieve our goals?” Ernie said.

“Well, the lock wouldn’t open for me anyway,” I said. “I was going to call you as soon as I got back up to the house.”

“Mhmm.” Ernest smiled. “Guess it’s good I’ve arrived then.”

“It doesn’t recognize me,” I said. “Maybe you can trigger the lock.”

“You both will shield—“

The Blackwater and I both spun up shields.

“By the flowers of Daerkne, I release thee!” he said, with a dramatic flourish.

Again nothing happened.

“Damn, I think we’re locked out,” I said. “It doesn’t recognize me in Spirit and doesn’t recognize you in Body.”

“And yet it’s not enough to trigger the ward…” Ernie said, tapping his chin.

“I suppose you two have attempted a discorporation spell to return Desdemonia to her body?” The Blackwater said.

I shrugged. “No…”

“It would take days for the spell to take effect.”

The Blackwater nodded.

“Let’s try saying it together,” I said.

He shrugged.

“By the flowers of Daerkne, I release thee.” We both said at exactly the same time.

We heard the locking mechanism clunk and the door opened slightly.

“Well,” Blackwater said, moving forward. “This is fortuitous.”

With a touch to the Blackwater’s neck, he fell into hypnosis again with his eyes glowing scarlet.

“I hope you understand he was just a useful tool to gain entrance down here,” Ernie said.

“He has an amulet that resets his Mindfulness every hour. Find it.”

Ernie and I walked around the man who was now murmuring “Ommmm….Ommmmm….Ommmm.”

“This guy must have twelve amulets,” Ernie said, pulling each one out from under his robes.

I sighed, opening my third eye to examine them critically.

“Ahh, and an amulet to ward people from removing other amulets.”

“We don’t have time to try find a way around it,” Ernie said. “Let’s go into the stacks and see what we can find before he awakens.”

I nodded, opening the door.

I didn’t exactly trust Ernie, but we did share a common headspace, so I didn’t think he’d use this opportunity to overcome me. We walked around each of the stacks, third eyes open and reading the magical inscription on each of the books.

We both found possible prospects, and opened them at the reading nook, scanning the pages quickly.

After three or four hours, and re-igniting the hypno spell on Ryan Blackwater, we had nothing.

Ernie sighed, slamming a book shut. “Anything?”

I shook my head. I was hungry, and my Eye was tired from scanning the ancient texts and translating them into English.

“We’ll just have to hope the Ancient One is satisfied with the Offering.”

I nodded, wincing. The Seth part of me was railing against hurting other people, but the other two quieted him down and kept his thoughts mostly quiescent.

We walked back out into the archway, and looked at the wizard.

“What do we do about him?” Ernie said.

“Ryan, can you hear me?” I said, whispering in his ear.

“Ommm…Yess…Ommmm”

“Perfect.” I touched his arm softly. “You like me, don’t you?”

“Ommm…Yessss….Ommmm…”

“You’d do anything for me, wouldn’t you?”

“Ommmm….Yess…..Ommmm…”

“Perfect. Now, listen carefully…” I gave him some instructions. Then snapped my fingers.

He glanced at me, awake and aware. “What happened?”

I smiled softly to him. “You fell asleep, silly boy.”

He frowned, looking around us. “Why are we down here?”

“You tell me,” I said smiling. “You portaled into my home, darling.”

“I did?” he blushed. “I’m sorry, Desdemonia, I’m not sure what came over me.”
I ran my fingers over the scruff of his face. “No trouble, darling. But I think Ernie would like to go home.”

He blinked again, harumphing. “Yes, of course.”

Twisting his fingers, he opened a portal.

Ernie gave me a wink and stepped through.

“Umm, can I come and see you later?”

I smiled. “We’ll see darling.”

He smiled back. “Okay. You know how to get ahold of me.”

I nodded, and kissed his cheek.

He stepped through the portal and it winked out of existence.

After returning to the main floor and eating a bite of lunch, it was getting close to time for my hair appointment. I put a scarf over my head, along with some dark glasses. I couldn’t have the public seeing my eyes glowing as red as they were. I put on a pair of skin-tight black leather pants, and a gold silk blouse. I pulled out a black feather boa, and wrapped it around my chubby shoulders. I pulled on a pair of ankle socks, then calf length black leather boots.

I decided to allow Bonnie to do my makeup in spring colors, so I didn’t apply any but I did wash my face with moisturizing soap. Spritzing on a bit of perfume, I left.

Several dozen acolytes chanted in the hallway as I passed. The infection was spreading, with more and more converts shambling toward the council chamber. They were drawn to the power of the Crystal, and I would use that when it was time to open the gate. When the crystal wasn’t near there, they were drawn to me, which was an unintended side effect of the infection I’d unleashed.

It was a fairly simple mind device called Obey. Essentially, from the moment it touched anyone sentient, they felt the need to seek out the crystal and obey me. Given any task, they would complete it, and return to the crystal. If not given a task, they would mindlessly shuffle toward the crystal, or me, depending on who was closer.

I drove into town, humming softly. Today was a good day. Less seventy-two hours until the Old One’s arrival, and everything was right on schedule.

I zipped through town, a bit faster than I intended, and old Barnaby Ollis, the town sheriff pulled me over at a stoplight.

“Oh, Desdemonia. Sorry, didn’t know it was you.”

“That’s alright, Barnaby. Good to see you’re being vigilant.”

He nodded. “Well, considering the craziness that’s happening over…hey, you wouldn’t know anything about that would ya?”

“About what, dear?”

“People are getting infected with some crazy kind of virus, then walking over to that old building on Silvery lane. Weirdest thing you ever did see.”

I shrugged. “Nope, sorry Barnaby, I have a hair appointment.”

“No problem, Desdemonia. Be on your way, but slow down, please?”

I gave him a salute, then touched his hand. “Obey.”

Immediately his eyes shone red, and he began to shamble off in the direction of the Crystal.

I drove the rest of the way, and parked in front of the salon. Several women sat under hair dryers, and Mildred Pierce was getting a perm.

“Ms. Landcaster!” Bonnie said, coming around the counter. “How have you been?”

“Just fine, dear. How is your family?”

“Wonderful! Though Frank has that weird, eye thing going around. Do you know about it?”

“Barnaby Ollis mentioned something,” I said.

“Yeah, weirdest thing!” She ushered me back, and took my feathered boa. “Can I get you anything? Water? Tea?”

“Be a dear and pour me a bit of gin and seven-up?”

She grinned, coming right away!”

I sat down in the chair, and she went and made my drink.

Staring into the mirror, I considered the look I wanted. It needed to be dramatic, as I would be the center of attention for the town. But I also wanted to be fashionable, and I was tired of the silver streaks.

“So what are we shooting for today?” Bonnie said.

“Bold, Brassy, Blond,” I said. Let’s go big!”

“Makeup, hair, Nails?” she said.

“The works, darling.” I sat back in the salon chair as she began to wash my hair.

It wasn’t long before I started to feel that strange feeling of another reality shift coming. I’d really wanted to stay in this reality; I still had so much to do! I needed to push the virus out to all edges of town, making sure everyone in High Valley had been touched or recruited. I also needed to recruit another Alpha Were leader to our cause, make sure no one on the Council was wriggling out of the bondage I’d induced, check back in on our wolf pets, and get the venue ready for the Gateway activation. My mind ticked off tasks and objectives, I really didn’t have time for a reality shift.

Remembering what Seth had done last time, I fixed a point in my mind, letting the wave approach and sweep through and over me…

…The smell of rotten eggs, things decaying, and burning rubber flooded my senses.

Stay as Desdemonia. Stay, Stay Stay…

I could see something below me, something with burning yellow eyes that moved, undulated, something that had tentacles rising up into the air, latching onto me and—

Different realities, different times, different entities flickered across my vision and senses. In one, I was Desdemonia, wearing an immense black robe, arms outstretched, power shooting from my fingertips. In another, I was Brother Langtree, chanting in soft tones, scraping dust from the bones of a corpse. Another flicker and I was April, a black silk dress around my supple form, dancing with a strange dark man, grinding my hips against his midsection. Another and I was Seth Atkins, stealing second-base after a passed pitch at home. I could hear the roar of the crowd and see my Mom and Dad waving to me from the stands. Another and I was back in the feral Alpha Werewolf body, leaping upwards onto the leg of the Elephantine creature, black talons digging into its skin as I scrabbled my way up the leg toward the shoulder.

I fought against the pressure, the feeling of inexorable tension, each reality streaking by me. In the distance a figure took form, that of the elephant head but with tentacles instead of trunks, pulling me toward it, pulling me through the infinite cosmos, the realities rushing past. I perceived the tentacle, wrapped around my Essence, pulling me through the multi-cosm against my will. I grabbed hold of it, twisting the force, trying to get it to release.

In the distance the Elephant-thing, trumpeted pain and confusion, opening burning eyes that pierced my soul in a conflagration of light, sound, and energy. I stopped trying to resist the pressure, felt myself pulled toward it, toward inevitable annihilation, rushing through dimensions, portals, planets, realities as this extra-dimensional being with immeasurable power ripped my realities, all realities into ribbons of multi-colored light.

Finally, it released me with the shock of a rubber band broken mid tension, and flung me into a dimension I hadn’t perceived. I tumbled through the ether, space, matter and time becoming physical again, coming to an abrupt halt.

Breath filled my lungs again and I inhaled, panting.

“You okay, dude?” someone said from beside me.

I opened my eyes and saw Jeff and others looking at me with concerned faces from behind a backstop.

“Where--” I said. “What?” I glanced down and saw Seth’s…my hands again.

A crowd had gathered around me. Guys in baseball uniforms; my teammates.

“Safe!” the umpire called, throwing his hands wide. The crowd cheered.

I blinked and looked around me. I was at home plate? A catcher in full gear sat nearby, his head bent over. A baseball sat in the dust a few feet away.

“Man, you took that guy out!” Barry Peterson, our pitcher said. “He won’t stand in front of home again!” Several of the guys had come out of the dugout to make sure I was okay.

I shook my head, trying to make sense of it all. I got up, and held my hand out to the catcher, who nodded, and took it gratefully. I pulled him up.

The crowd clapped politely as the catcher put his helmet back on and took his stance again behind home plate.

I walked toward our dugout.

Coach Nichols clapped me on the shoulder. “You okay, son?”

I nodded. “Yeah, just had the wind knocked out of me.” That and reality itself.

“Okay boys, funs over!” Coach said, clapping his hands. “Atkins put us back in the game!”

I sat on the bench, my brain overloaded from everything that had just happened. Derek Metz handed me a cup of water and I drank it greedily.

“You okay, dude?” he said, sitting next to me.

“Yeah, thanks.”

“That was a hell of a slide.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” I said, rubbing my head.

“What’s up with you lately?” he said.

I shrugged, if you only knew. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’re hanging around a lot over at the Landcaster Estate. And sometimes April Landcaster has been at school.”

I swallowed. “Just doing some chores for them over there. Cutting the grass, cleaning the pool, that kinda thing.”

He nodded. “Am sorry about your friend, by the way.”

“Which one?”

He looked at me like I’d gone crazy. “Mitzy? The only one of your friends to turn into a feral butterfly?” He chucked me on the shoulder. “Damn, man, what you been drinking?”

I shook my head. “You know, finals, college applications, that kinda stuff.”

“Where you thinking?”

I sighed. It had been an omnipresent thing before April first came around. Now it was such a thing in the distant past…wait, had I really caused a virus in the last reality that magically hypnotized the entire town?”

After a two run homer, we won the game. Mom, Dad, and Jeff met me in the stands after.

“Good game, sport!” Dad said.

“Yeah, if you hadn’t scored that run, I think it would have been over,” Mom said. “Did you hurt yourself?”

I rubbed my head. “Nah, just a flesh wound.”

“Well, we’re almost to the night when you’re your weakest.”

“Wait, really? When is that?”

Dad looked at me. “Tomorrow night. Why?”

I shook my head. “Well, I’ve had another reality shift.”

He nodded, and looked at Mom. “We figured something might have happened.”

“What’s this?” Jeff said.

“Nothing, man,” I said. “Just…supernatural stuff.”

“Ah, yeah, that doesn’t involve me at all.” He sighed. “Damn, I miss Mitzy.”

“I know, Bro.”

“I think we should get you home so we can talk?” Dad said.

I nodded. “Talk to you later, man,” I said to Jeff.

“Hey, we’re getting pizza. Probably go out after. Hit me up if you wanna hang.”

“I will.”

“No fucking the old lady!” Jeff chuckled, and ran off.

I sighed, glancing at my phone. April/Desdemonia had texted me seventeen times during the game.

DD: I’m bored… when will the game be over?
DD: Bring food Im hungry
DD: And alcohol
DD: What time will you be here
DD: I hate this April gets to go out and enjoy her life and Im stuck here
DD: I love you Hope you know that
DD: JESuS bE DOnE ALReADY
DD: If Jeff wants you to go out with him DO NOT GO I need you
DD: Fuck
DD: Ima dye my hair If you show up in the next hour go around back it’s open.
DD: MOM HAS MACROS FOR HER APPEARANCE WHY DIDN’T I KNOW THIS
DD: uh oh I just turned myself into fat Marilyn Monroe
DD: Now Im fat Audrey Hepburn
DD: Now Im fat Cruella Deville BRING ME A DALMATION Ima eat it
DD: Aaaand Im fat gwen stefani
DD: BRING SMOKES
DD: HURRY UP IM BORED AF

I shook my head. How had I come to the game? Mom and Dad were walking away, as if I had my own ride. I went out to the student parking lot and found my truck.

I got in, but before I could turn on the ignition, I looked at myself in the mirror.

Seth Atkins, looked back at me. Strong, rugged, chiseled of jaw, with dust in his hair and grass stains on his jersey.

A headache commenced right behind my eyes. “Who are you?” I said, looking at the mirror.

It did not answer back.

Hey everyone. Raine here. I sorta messed up the numbers on my chapter. THIS is the real 29. My apologies!

I drove home.

We were less than 24 hours away from the Gateway opening, and I still had no idea what was going on.

The facts were these: Somehow I’d been caught up in by a big dark tentacular Something that wanted to come through into this reality.

Or…did it want to come through into my original reality?

I thought about the face, staring at me through the multi-dimensional times-space I’d been falling through. It was the only constant, those shimmering yellow eyes as the rest of space and time fell around me.

Desdemonia’s personality and memories were in my mind. As were Brother Langtree's. April had been caught by Desdemonia in this reality where she took her body as hers. Mitzy Butterfly had been caught and turned into a feral butterfly. Dad and Mom were alive, healthy, human and here. If only I knew where here was?

If I saved this reality, would it save all realities? Did I somehow have to battle that thing in each reality? Or if I lost once would it all be over? Not to mention how I was supposed to battle a multi-dimensional being that could pull me into dimensions like someone pulls open a can of beer.
I was the Key.

It made sense. It didn’t seem like anyone else was going through these reality shifts. If they were would I even know? Could someone or many someones be traveling through them as I am?

I thought of the crystal in my home reality. Desdemonia had taken over my mind and had enacted a plan to usher in the new Being like he was a celebrity at a trade show. She had hypnotized the entire town and bent them to her will. And I had willingly gone through with it, I hadn’t fought back, hadn’t even thought to fight back while she was doing it.

So what happened?

I scratched my head, feeling the grit of sand.

Somehow, I had come to the fore. So not only was I battling this extra-dimensional being, I had to battle Desdemonia for the right to my own mind? Was there any winning this thing?

I thought of everyone I loved. Mitzy, stuck here as a butterfly, April, Stuck in the last dimension as a wolf. Dad, ditto for that. April stuck here as her own mother. Desdemonia had left that morning to go into town for some dark reason. Could she be plotting the same thing here, just in April’s body instead of mine?

I had to stop them. Had to stop myself from being used to their ends. Had to find a way to close whatever gate had opened that was causing me to fall through time, space, and dimensions so I could put things right. I couldn’t make any headway when I was being yanked on a chain like this.

April had said she saw a tentacle…I closed my eyes, opening my Third eye.

I glanced in the mirror and immediately realized why you should never do that while opening your third eye.

Opening the window, I puked out the side of the truck, heaving whatever this body had last ate into the parking lot.

Ugh, not good.

Taking a few breaths, and sucking some water from a nearby water bottle, I tried it again.

This time, rather than looking in the mirror, I looked town.

I could see my aura, bright orange, but it was now mixed with blue and black, just like I’d seen on Desdemonia. She was still in me, somewhere, maybe knocked unconscious?

As I looked at my arms, my legs, and then my middle, I spotted it. A tentacle tied directly into my nether regions down there. It was the same kind of binding as April and I had days earlier.

Gritting my teeth, I pulled on the tentacle.

Pain suffused my testicles, like I was yanking a live wire directly in my brain. I coughed then fell over on the front seat of my truck, bringing my knees up to my chest.

Well, that wouldn’t work.

I needed more info. How could one fight an extradimensional being capable of shuffling realities like a cardmaster shuffles a deck of cards? If I battle it in one dimension, do I have to continue to jump to other dimensions and battle it again and again? If I lose in one did I lose in all? If a won in one, would I win in all?

None of it felt right. I decided to visit the one person I knew who might be able to help.

Starting my truck up again, I sped off. I’m pretty sure I knew where he lived; I’d been to his house a few times selling raffle tickets and chocolate bars for Little League.

###

Mr. Stewart, my High School Math teacher lived in the middle of a cul-de-sac at the top of a slight hill. His lights were on, and his car was in the driveway. I went to the door and knocked.

“Yes?” Said an older hispanic woman who opened the door.

“Uh, I’m looking for Mr. Stewart? Does he live here?”

“Who’s at—Oh! Hello, Seth! What brings you here?” Mr. Stewart worked his way around the woman, smiling at me.

“Um, I’m having a problem I hope you can help me with.”

“Sure, come on in!” He held the door open. “Anita, this is Seth, Seth, Anita, my wife.”

“Hello Ma’am,” I said, smiling and holding my hand out.

“Hello, Seth.” She shook my hand. “Awfully late to be out, isn’t it?”

“Um, yes, but this is an emergency. I’m so sorry to intrude.”

She smiled. “No trouble, Seth. Would you like something to drink?”

“Water if you have it,” I said. I was still really thirsty.

“You look like you just came from the baseball diamond,” Mr. Stewart said. He was a small man with salt and pepper thinning hair and a small mustache.

“Yeah,” I said. “Game against Fuller Academy.”

“Victorious?” he asked, as we sat down at his kitchen table.

“Yes.” I took the glass Mrs. Stewart offered and drank it dry. “Thank you.”

“So, how can I help you at this late hour? I haven’t seen you in school, so I’ve been wondering what’s happened.”

I nodded and sighed. Well…you see there was this girl—“ and I proceeded to tell him about April and getting snared in the trap of the Who.

He frowned and took out a piece of paper and a pencil. He made a quick sketch. “This the creature you saw?”

I looked down at it and shivered. “Yep, that’s it.”

“And you say it’s wanting to come through the Gate tomorrow night?”

I nodded.

He tapped the drawing with his pencil, idly. “And now, it’s pulling you through different dimensions of reality?”

“Yes.” I crossed my arms. “In the last one, Desdemonia Landcaster sort of took over my consciousness and had created a hypno virus that infected the town. She wanted to open the Gate to the Who, and she was going to offer everyone in town as a sacrifice to hopefully keep her in power.”

Mr. Stewart rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I can see why she’d do that.”

“Wow,” I said. “Not the answer I expected.”

“Well, it’s the old bear trick, right? Roll yourself up into a ball and play dead and hope the bear doesn’t tear you to ribbons.”
“I’ve heard that rarely woks.”

He grinned. “It must work enough times for it to become a survival technique. And hence, why Desdemonia thought rolling the town up into a ball might just reduce the amount of casualties this being might inflict.”

I thought about the creature in the green dimension. “I don’t think it cares, it’s just going to eat everything in its path.”

“Exactly. It and it’s ilk are precisely why we have dimensional gates in the first place. They tried to seal every dimension away, but that just made things worse. No, I don’t think rolling the town into a ball will save anything.”

“What am I going to do?” I said, feeling a sense of panic. “This thing is going to take me somehow tomorrow, and use me to come into the realities.”

“I have an idea…” he went and dug around in a closet and came back with a couple of items.

“So, let’s say fabric represents our dimension.” He held out a piece of gray microfiber cloth in front of him.

“This represents the being we’re talking about.” He took a ball bearing and set it onto the fabric.

“Now, imagine, if you will, a multitude of pieces of fabric laid on top of each other, but also at every possible angle.

“Okay.”

“He isn’t restricted by time, space, or dimension. That means he has some ability to perceive the dimensions as we do light. We have eyes, so the light reflects off a plane and strikes our eyes that is translated into electrical impulses, and then to our brain which interprets, analyzes and synthesizes the information it’s receiving. It does this very quickly.”

“Right, I follow.”

“The Who, must have some type of organ that allows it to perceive dimensions in the same manner. For us, we can’t understand it because it’s like seeing with your kneecaps.”

“Okay.”

“So, if you were able to somehow take out that organ, incapacitate, or ‘blind’ it for want of a better word, it wouldn’t be able to move between dimensions.”

I nodded. “I think I see where you’re going with this.”

“After ‘blinding’ it, and this would take mathematics beyond my own comprehension, but if you could create a ‘pocket dimension’ that would seal the being off from any other dimensions…”

“Ahh, a dimensional prison! Yes.”

“Correct. So it’s a two step process…well, three if you include terminating it. But I don’t know I’d recommend trying to terminate it, this being probably pre-dates time/space as we know it. I don’t think a knife to the heart is going to do it.”

“A baseball bat,” Mrs. Stewart said. “You could use a baseball bat to it’s brains.”

He chuckled. “I doubt a baseball bat would work either, dear.”

I nodded. “How do I do all that though?”

Mr. Stewart smiled, as he stood up from the table. “That, I can’t help you with, my boy.”

I got up from the table and sighed.

“There is, one other option,” Mrs. Stewart said.

“Oh?” we both paused.

“You say you fight this t’ing.”

“Well, not really fight. More like ran and hid and tried to avoid being squished like a bug.”

“One way to fight a dimensional being…be another dimensional being.”

“If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!” Mr. Stewart said.

“Hah.” I nodded. “True.”

As I left his house, I had more of an idea of how to stop it.

If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! Echoed through my brain as I got into my truck and started it up.

And this is the real chapter thirty. Apologies again for the mistake.

As I pulled away from Mr. Stewart’s house, I had a conundrum. April had texted me several more times, but I wanted to go home and compare notes with Mom and Dad regarding the new information Mr. Stewart had given me.

Meanwhile, the clock was ticking, and the Who was coming. I didn’t know how much longer I might have in this dimension, or reality, or whatever, and I wanted to find out as much as I could before I was pulled back into the clutches of Desdemonia’s mind.

Hungry, I stopped by PizzaHouse, and got a couple of pies with fried zuchinni. I drove up the hill to April’s house, and stopped at the gate, buzzing the ringer. The gates opened, and I drove up the path.

She greeted me at the door. She wore a silky negligee number and her dark hair was long and it poofed up on the top before spilling down over her chubby shoulders.

“Jesus, I’ve been waiting hours!” she said, holding a cigarette in her hand. Her voice was husky and low from the alcohol and nicotine.
“Yeah, I needed to see Mr. Stewart about the dimensional shifting.”

I walked into the house holding the two pizza boxes. I set them on the table, as April flung her arms around me. “I missed you!”
“Missed you too..” I said, pulling back. “This looks nice,” I touched her hair.

“You like it?” she walked over to a mirror hanging over the mantel. “Mom has a bunch of dolls in her closet that apparently she can trigger to make her dressed with full makeup, hair, and accessories. It’s a nifty spell!”

“Huh.” I said. She certainly didn’t have that in my reality.

“Did you bring smokes?” She said, pawing through the grocery bags. “This is my last one.”

“Ah, no. Sorry.”

She sighed. “But you did bring beer and pizza, so you’re mostly forgiven. I’m starving!”

I smiled, as she levered out a piece of pizza and began eating it voraciously.

We sat at the counter, eating pizza and drinking beer. Neither of us spoke much.

“Must be a shock for you to be a Friday Night and not be out with your group.”

She shrugged. “April is.”

I nodded.

“And I don’t miss it, honestly. I’d much rather stay in, snuggle, and watch movies over the nightclub scene.”

“Snuggle huh?”

She smiled. “But after you take a shower, Mister!”

“Okay, okay.” I smiled.

Walking back into the Master bathroom, I took off my clothes and turned on the hot water.

I had a few changes of clothes here. Apparently, I’d been spending quite a bit of time with ‘Desdemonia’ and I had a couple pairs of pants, shoes, and t-shirts. I laid out some clean jeans and a white t-shirt, and had just started showering when I heard the shower door open.
“Mmm, yummy!” Someone wrapped their arms around me from behind. At first I smiled, recognizing April’s voice, but then I realized that was April’s Voice and not Desdemonia’s! Quickly, I turned away from her..

“Uh, be out in a second!”

“What, you don’t want to be naked with me?” Desdemonia pouted April’s mouth in a perfect little moue.

Realizing the April hadn’t filled Desdemonia on my knowledge of the switch, I had to play the part.

“Uh, sure baby. C’mere,” I said.

She grinned at me, and slid into my arms. I held her a moment, but really felt strange doing that and got under the deluge of water, to rinse myself off.

“Aww,” she pouted. “I was hoping for shower sex. Mom won’t mind.”

I shook my head. “Look, Desdemonia, I know who you really are. You might as well stop the act.”

“What?” she looked hurt. “I’m not—“

“Spare me, I know what’s going on. Look, we have some things to talk about. Get dressed, and let’s go out there with the real April.”
Angrily, she washed the rest of the soap off then turned off the water. I pulled on the pair of jeans, and the cotton t-shirt, and walked out of the room.

Desdemonia — April, was on the bed, hands crossed under her pendulous breasts.

“Did you enjoy yourself in there?”

“Nothing happened, and I told her I knew what was going on.”

She looked panicked. “You didn’t!”

“Yes.” Desdemonia said, stepping out with a towel wrapped around her body and another one around her hair. “He did.”

I sighed, sitting on the bed with her. I took April in Desdemonia’s body into my arms, and held her. “There’s some things that have been happening we need to discuss.”

“Oh?” Desdemonia said, her eyes sliding to inky pools as she filled herself with power and rage.

“Don’t you dare, daughter.” April’s own eyes slid into black pools. Lightning crackled from her fingertips.

I saw the two women about to square off with me in between and I held my hands up.

“Look, I need some help from the two of you. There’s some things going on that I can’t handle by myself.”

Both of them settled down as their eyes returned to normal. ‘April’ put on a terrycloth robe, and sat in a bedside chair.
“So what’s up, stupid?” ‘Desdemonia’ said, squeezing my hand.

“I met with Mr. Stewart earlier tonight. I’ve been pulled through different dimensions and realities by an entity known as The Who.”

I went on to tell them what I’d learned, and where I’d been.

Afterward, they asked some questions.

‘April’ spoke first. “So, you had a mind-meld with me, and Elder Langtree?”

I nodded. “In my origin reality, you and Elder Langtree got pulled into a translocation spell by April and I’s Witch’s knot that unraveled suddenly and without warning.

“Hmm,” she stood up and started pacing. “And the best those minds could put together was to activate the Crystal and hypnotize the town into obedience? Basically, laying out a smorgasboard for the Who to consume when it comes through?”

“Yes, at the time, it seemed like the best way to go. Mr. Stewart calls it ‘rolling up for the bear.’

She nodded. “Well, yes, and powered individuals could be of use to An Ancient One, like that. And you say this is happening tomorrow night?”
I glanced at the clock. “Tonight, actually. Midnight, I’m guessing.”

“Dark night of the Soul,” she said. “Makes sense, since you’d be at your weakest strength.”

“So the way I see it, we have two paths: One, I try to figure out how to ‘blind’ the Ancient One to Dimensional perception, or two, become a Dimensional being myself.”

“Can an Alpha be Wrought in that fashion, Daughter?” April said.

“Anything is possible, I suppose.” She sighed. “It would take a great deal of magic, potentially all the magic accessible by this plane of existence.”

“It could be keyed to his curse,” April said, stroking my arm.

“Yes, that would be the best way. The Crystal could provide the boost of power I suppose. I think I could talk the Council into that, if you’re willing, Seth.”

“Whatever is necessary…” I said, swallowing.

“You realize, that afterward, anytime your changed you’d no longer be a Werewolf,” April said.

“I wouldn’t?”

She shook her head. “This would replace the ‘wolf’ part of your curse with the Dimensional Space Being…can you live with that?”

“Do I have a choice?” I said.

To anyone following along -- I accidentally preposted some of the later chapters as chapter 29 and 30. This has been worked out now, but if you haven't read the *revised* chapters you might want to go back and read them since they're new material. Oh yeah, and forget everything that was posted before in their places. ;)

Raine

Desdemonia in April’s body went to bed a little while later, leaving me and April in her bedroom.

“Are you sure you want to try this?” she said. “There’s no going back, once the process is initiated.”

I shrugged. “No. But I don’t see a way out.” I got dressed, putting my watch back on and combing my still wet hair.

“You look like you’re leaving.” She wrapped her arms around me.

“I need to talk to Mom and Dad,” I said.

She looked up at me. “Will you be back after?”

I caressed her face. It was eerie, I’d been looking at that face in a mirror not too long ago. I had a distant desire to smoke a cigarette and change into nightclothes. “I’ll sleep in my own bed tonight.”

“Aww,” she walked away from me, pouting. “I waited all night for you. You could see them in the morning?”

“No, I really need to talk to them. I don’t know if I’ll ever get to see them again.”

She nodded, then leaned up for a kiss.

I kissed her back.

“I love you,” she said softly.

I knew what she needed. She needed me to say ‘I love you too.’ But did I?

None of this would have happened if she hadn’t been so intent on making me or Mitzy her fool in a fit of petty jealousy. Mitzy, my sweet best friend, who hadn’t hurt anyone - who was now at the hands of whatever monster in my original reality had been created from my body as Desdemonia. Had she and Jeff been taken in by the hypno virus? Were they standing, now, in the glow of the crystal, ready willing and wanting to be a tasty treat for the Ancient One?

It wasn’t all April’s fault. A lot of it was circumstance. Would the Who have just found someone else? Someone with less powerful friends, someone who would have opened the Gate blithely?

“I love you too,” I said, and gave her another kiss.

###

“Are you kidding me?” Dad said, when I told them of our plans. “You’re going to trust your body to a trio of dark mages? How stupid are you, boy?”

“Dad, I don’t know what else to do!”

“You are not going to let those people cast any spell on you,” Mom said, furious. “I forbid it!”

“Look, I know they have their own reasons and motivations,” I said. “But in this case, I think we all want the same thing!”

“But, son, they’ll discard you if it’s in their best interest to do so, and at the first moment you become inconvenient.”

I thought of April, kissing me, telling me she loved me. Was all that manipulation?

“I don’t know, dad.” I sat down, putting my head on my hands. “What else can I do?”

“It’s not up to you, Seth, honey.” Mom sat down next to me, putting her arms over my shoulders and laying her head down. “This isn’t your problem to solve.”

“Mom, it’s got a hold of me. You can use your third eye, too. Look at me.”

She sighed, and closed her eyes.

I stood up in front of her, holding my hands out at waist level.

“Jesus, your aura has shifted. I can see Desdemonia’s influence!”

I nodded. “At least I’m me right now. In the last reality, I think I was mostly her. It was scary, I was doing things, thinking they were right but they weren’t. I was essentially going to offer up the entire mortal population of earth as fodder to the Old One.”

Dad shook his head. He was angry, I could see the way his jaw muscle pulsed. It was the telltale sign.

“If we could unravel this hold it has on you, then it would leave you alone,” Mom said.

“Or would it just find someone else?” I replied.

Dad sat down, and the three of us were silent for awhile.

“I don’t like this idea at all.” He finally said. “It feels like you’re sacrificing yourself.”

I nodded. “I don’t either, dad, but things in all realities are pretty fucked up as it is.”

“And how would this fix any of that?” Mom said.

“I’d defeat the Old One. Either encapsulate it in a pocket reality, or kill it, or blind it at least to dimensional travel.

“But, Seth, you’d be a feral Were trying to do it! You know what that means!” Dad pounded the table.

“I was thinking about that,” I said. “I mean, yes, I’d be in Were form, but I’d also be able to see the other realities. Maybe I could jump to one after defeating it where the moon is full, and then the power of the moon will help me to return to normal.”

He nodded, frowning. “I could see how that could work.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Mom said. “This brilliant plan is to have you go through this rite, so your alpha nature is changed to that of the Ancient One. Then when the Ancient One comes through, somehow you battle it and send it packing. Then, after defeating it, you’ll translocate to a dimension where the moon is full, return to normal, and then what?”

“Come home,” I said.

“And what happens during the full moon every month?”

I shrugged. “I’ll become that..creature…again. Unless they can figure out a way to remove it. I dunno, Mom, I’m just trying to prevent the Apocalypse.”

“We’ll have to burn that bridge when we come to it,” Dad said, sighing. “I suppose I don’t see any better ideas, Seth. If you truly think they won’t try to warp this to their own ends—“

“Well, I think if you were there it’d really help.”

He nodded. “We both will be.”

“God, I’ve missed you guys,” I hugged mom, and dad patted me on the shoulder.

“We’ve always been right here.”

I nodded, feeling a tear bite the corner of my eyes. “I know.”

He stood up. “You better try to get some sleep, son, considering what day it is.”

I stood up, yawning. “Yeah.”

“What time are you going to meet them?” Mom said.

“Sundown,” I stretched. “They have to get the other members of the council to agree.”

“Ugh, that is going to be difficult,” Mom said.

“I think they’ll be victorious,” I grinned.

They walked with me to my bedroom, and gave me a hug before bed. Then, arm in arm, they walked to their own bedroom.

I slid beneath the covers, too nervous to be sleepy. I was worried I’d wake up in the wrong dimension, and all this planning would go to waste.

My phone pinged just as my eyelids were starting to droop.

DD: you up
Me: Yeah, just trying to close my eyes
DD: what did your parents say when you told them
Me: Not much to say. They’re worried.
DD: me too
Me: I’m worried I’m going to shift dimensions before we do the rite.
DD: That would be bad
Me: Right?
DD: Then youd have this old lady body not me
Me: Love, in that reality, you’re stuck as a Grey Wolf.
DD: I think Id rather be that than this
Me: And mated to my dad?
DD: Hes not bad for a dadbod
Me: Hey!
DD: Just sayin stupid
Me: I’m going to get some sleep now.
DD: Sure you dont want some old fat lady lovin
Me: I’ll see you in a little while.
DD: Heart Emoji
Me: Heart

I set my phone on the charger, then tried to close my eyes. Images of the Thing beyond the world staring at me through the dimensions played over and over. I don’t know if they were a dream, a waking dream, or reality. All I know is I could hear the birds outside frolicking and twittering before I knew it.

(This chapter was previously posted as Chapter 29)

Jeff Farnum picked me up at seven AM right on schedule. I grabbed my backpack, and jumped into the passenger side.

“You look like shit,” he said.

“Yeah.” I yawned. I felt like I hadn’t slept in days. I ran a hand over my face and my hair, trying to wake up.

“That was a great game last night.”

“Thanks.”

I had my head on what we were going to attempt later on this afternoon. I wished I’d been able to get more sleep, but I didn’t want to alarm anyone at school by not being around. Who knew when I’d get a chance to say good-bye to my friends?”

“Listen man,” I said, as we drove down the country roads that led to the high school. “You know you’re my best friend.”

“Jesus, what now?”

“What?” I said.

“You never start a sentence like that unless you’re gearing up for something awful. What gives?”

I shook my head, swallowing past a lump in my throat. “Just…something is going to happen tonight. Something major. And I’m not sure I’m going to be able to come back from it, you know?”

He nodded. “I figured something was happening, what with you actually friends with that Landcaster bitch.”

That rankled me, but I let it go. “I just want you to know how much you and Mitzy mean to me.”

“Yeah. Sucks that she migrated.”

“What?”

“Yeah, don’t you remember? Was a few days ago. Where you been, man?”

I shook my head. Of course I didn’t have memories from a few days ago. A few days ago, I’d been Desdemonia. The thought of that was giving me a headache.

“Anyway, whatever happens tonight, you know you’re my best friend too, man,” he hit me on the shoulder. “Just don’t fuck up whatever it is.”

“Hah.”

He grinned at me. “So what are they going to do?”

I sighed. “Going to change my Alpha Were condition.”

“What, you won’t be a werewolf anymore?”

“Nope.”

“What’ll you be?”

I scratched my head. What did one call a multi-dimensional super-being?

“Ah…I’ll still be a were, just not a wolf.”

“Maybe they’ll turn you into a Were-bimbo!” he laughed. “Like Ryan.”

Ryan Davidson was a WereWoman who we shared classes with. Nights of the full moon he turned into a woman with an extremely high libido.

“No, nothing like that.”

“Aww.”

We got to school and hung out in front of the entrance like usual. I saw ‘April’ standing with her retinue, smoking and gossiping. It looked like Desdemonia had completely integrated with April’s life seamlessly.

She sauntered over to me, flicking ash from her cigarette with a sassy twist of her wrist. “Well, hello pet.”

“Hello April.”

She took a puff. “So when you fuck my mother, do you do it doggy style?”

Several of the girls in her retinue cackled at that. “Yeah, doggy!”

I rolled my eyes, and turned to Jeff, shaking my head.

“Can you believe it?” she said to the crowd. “This doggy likes it doggy style with my mom!”

“Ewww!” several of the girls said.

“Come on, man.” Jeff pulled me away from the group.

“See you later, Fool!” she called after me.

Jeff and I walked into the main foyer where most of the other kids had gathered.

“Hey, good game yesterday!” someone said.

“Thanks,” I smiled.

“Way to get us back in the game!” another girl said.

“That’s the way I roll,” I said.

I made it to my AP US History class just before the bell rang. I honestly had no idea where or what we were studying, and had a queasy greasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I really hoped Miss Minnick wouldn’t call on me. I did my best to not call any attention to myself as I silently sat down in my seat.

The bell rang. We all started working on the board work which was to write two pages on Civil War trends in today’s America. I loved writing and immediately immersed myself in the assignment.

“Well, well!” Miss Minnick said, standing in front of my desk. I could smell the brimstone as she tapped my desk. “Appears we have a celebrity in our midst.”

“Hmm?” I said.

“I heard you single-handedly turned the tide on the ballgame yesterday.”

“Oh,” I felt myself blush. “Right.”

“Congratulations.”

I gave her a tight smile. “Thanks.”

“I’d like to speak with you in the hallway, if you would be so kind.”

I sighed, and nodded.

We stepped out into the hall. She closed the door, and pulled me over to a deserted corner.

“So tonight is the big night?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

“I imagine your involved in some type of plan?”

“Desdemonia and April are going to use the High Valley Crystal to try to infuse a different Alpha form within me.”

She frowned, her perfect brows narrowing. “And why would they do that?”

“I’ve been traveling across realities. The Who apparently is going to use me tonight to open the Gate, or whatever.”

“I see. They seek to create a multi-dimensional being from your Alpha nature?”

I nodded.

“Well, an entire contingent of infernals will be in attendance tonight. We have powerful demons from across many realms. So we’ll have your back.”

I smiled. “That’s good to know.”

“Some of them aren’t very…pleasing…to look at. So if you need to communicate with us, find me.”

“I will.”

She touched my arm, and I could feel the heat radiating off her body. “I want you to know…you’ve been an excellent student, Seth.”

I nodded, feeling my throat clench. “You’ve been a great teacher!”

“Whatever happens as a result of tonight, we…”

She looked up at me. “We appreciate the sacrifice you’re making.”

I nodded. “Thanks.”

“No matter what form you might take…the infernal realms will always be open to you, Seth Atkins. Please allow us to assist. We have many many demonic beings that would help you feel welcome.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“I just…”

She turned away, wiping a tear.

“What?” I said.

“I just hope something of your intellect remains, Seth. You’re such a smart young man. It would be such a waste..”

I gave a wry grin. “Hey, I plan on taking your semester II class!”

She nodded and smiled. “No slacking in that one.”

We walked back into the classroom, and things returned to normal.

I wondered what ‘normal’ would look like tomorrow. I thought of that desolate reality with the creature eating anything and everything in sight, breathing those noxious fumes.

Please don’t let me end up like that. I pleaded with the Universe
.
The Universe did not answer back.

------------------------------------------

Don't want to wait for the exciting conclusion? You can purchase the finished novel now at https://rainemonday.gumroad.com/l/AprilsFool

If you enjoyed this please consider joining my patreon at: https://patreon.com/rainemonday

It wasn’t just the infernals that sent a contingent. It appeared the entire town sent entities to the Council chambers.

I stood with April as people gathered around the immense crystal. Everyone spoke in excited hushed tones and several had winked at me, or touched me on the arm, or leaned in to give me a kind whisper.

I was definitely the, uh, Were of the hour.

“Those’ll kill ya,” I said, stepping up to ‘Desdemonia’ as she nervously smoked a cigarette in a long holder. She wore the black robes of her office and had pulled her dark hair up into a dramatic up-sweep that framed her chubby face perfectly.

She rolled perfectly shadowed eyes at me. “I could be so lucky.”

I wondered what was happening in my home reality. I wondered if my body continued to pass the hypno-virus on to townspeople and if they were all gathered in the chamber with scarlet glowing eyes.

My father took his place at his podium. He wore a grey robe, much different from his cloak of office in my original reality. In that reality, he’d paid over a thousand dollars for a tailored robe with silver piping. In this reality, he settled for the standard cloak with no frills or added decorations at all.

Mom stood next to him. They weren’t the only mixed-faction coupling, but I was the only mixed-faction offspring in Hill Valley. Mom gave me a wave, and Dad winked at me.

I felt like this was a big mistake. Afterall, weren’t we basically playing into the Being’s hand? It yoinked me into this reality, shouldn’t I be trying to get back to one it didn’t want me within?

Butterflies flooded my stomach, and I started to hyperventilate a little. I leaned over and put my hands on my legs with my head down, trying to control my breathing.

“You okay?” April said. She flicked ash from the long cigarette holder.

“Yeah, I just can’t help but feel like this is a mistake.”

“How so?”

I shrugged, standing up a bit. “It pulled me into this reality. This is where it wants me.”
“From what you said, it could get you in any reality.”

I nodded.

“Plus, you wouldn’t have a plan with other people in the other realities, right?”

“Or maybe a plan was/is made.”

She nodded, puffing on the cigarette. “Things get confusing when you throw meta-beings into the mix.”

“Do you really think this is going to work?” I said.

She gave me a Desdemonia grin. “You mean, do I think we’ll be able to replace your Alpha in time for you to wrestle the Cthuhulian horror that’s at the gate?”

“Yeah, that.”

“I guess time will tell.”

I nodded, still feeling lightheaded. I wanted to bolt, to run, to find a corner of the earth where this thing couldn’t get me—

As if in answer, I felt something pulling inwardly. It made me feel like I was going to vomit.

“Umm,” I said. “I think it might be coming.”

Her eyes got wide. “Oh!”

“So if I become this Were-Cthuhulian creature…won’t I be a danger to everyone too?”
She threw her arms around me and hugged me to her prodigious bosom. “Yes, but you’ll be our Cthuhulian Horror.”

Sweat started to bead my brow. Would I be able to control myself if I went feral? It had always been in the back of my mind since finding out I was a werewolf.

I did have control in some ways, when I shifted. I was able to tell right from wrong, kill, vs. Not kill. Food vs. Not Food. I guess most were’s gave in to their inner impulses, but I’d always been able to exert at least a bit of control over myself.

Maybe it was my incipient dual nature. Dad was able to do it too, and he wasn’t Dual. I sighed. “We should probably get this over with.”

Cecilia Goldman and ‘April’ entered arm in arm. Desdemonia wore a daring mini-skirt and halter in black, and had thick gold hoop earrings, gold bangles, and several gold necklaces. She also had pierced her nose with a gold septum ring and her extended nails led to gold rings on every finger.

Her curly midnight hair was caught up in a high pony that she liked to swish from side to side as she walked to her ‘mother’s’ side. “Hello Mumsy.”

“Hello, Daughter,” April said.

Ryan Blackwater the wizard, Balon Stamper the ghoul, and Lance Barlow of the infernals all took their places at their podiums equidistant around the crystal chamber.

“Well, Mother?” ‘April’ said. “I think everyone is waiting for you.”

‘Desdemonia’ sighed, and waddled up the few steps to her position as the leader of the Council. She adjusted the magically infused device attached to the platform.

“Is this thing working?” she said, and all of us could hear her as if she were speaking in our ears.

“Yes.” Came the combined response.

“Welcome, Council, and friends to our Council Meeting.” April read from notes that she and Desdemonia had prepared prior. “Thank you for your attendance tonight. Due to the nature of this event, we will be suspending parliamentary procedures and getting to the Rite of the evening.”

Several people started murmuring at that and Judy Nissom hissed, quietly.
“I know this is a deviation from our standard procedures, but I ask that you would indulge me,” April said.

She waited for the crowd to quiet down."Now, as you all know The Who stands at the Gate, and we believe will attempt to make entry tonight. You’ve all felt the ripples of chaos magic—“

She over at the ‘stable’ they’d created to house the mythical creatures that had begun arriving in High Valley over the past month. A unicorn, a griffin, two Harpies, and a Hydra had been captured and contained by the Council.

“In order to combat The Who, Seth Atkins has agreed to sacrifice himself, his very Alpha nature, in order to become High Valley, and the world’s Warrior!”

Mom and Dad began applauding at that. Soon, the smattering became a wave, until everyone was applauding. I could literally feel everyone looking at me. I spotted Jeff Farnum in the crowd—

He wasn’t applauding. He was shaking his head and saying something to me. In fact, he turned away, elbowing his way out of the crowd, toward the door.

I sighed. It made me sad he wasn’t going to see this, but at the same time, if he’d been up here, I’d probably have done the exact same thing.

“We’ll need everyone’s full cooperation to conjoin your energy into the whole. By joining our energy with that of the Crystal—“ she flourished a hand in the direction of the crystal. It was currently clear and centered right in front of us.

It was about 7 feet tall, faceted, and set within a nearly circular ring of silver that bracketed the crystal. I was supposed to walk within the ring and they would trigger the magic that would pierce me and transmogrify my Alpha state.

April continued speaking, but my eyes were caught by the multi-faceted crystal. Every face was mirrored in it’s perfectly smooth surface. It almost looked wet, but I figured it had recently been polished.

For some reason, my mind turned to Mitzy with her wings slowly moving in the air as she stood on the branch of the tree, her insectile head moving in jerky motions. I saw my father as a grey wolf, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he raised a paw, beside April who wagged her tail and loved to be scratched and petted.

I suppose I’d be joining their number soon, but as what? Some kind of multi-dimensional thing that could walk between realities.

I thought of the immense elephant-headed thing from that other dimension, with a face full of tentacles and burning yellow eyes. What would it feel like to be something else? Would I be sad, afraid, lonely?

I really didn’t want to do this. But I couldn’t see my way around it. No one else could stand where I stood and give himself like this.

Was I, in many ways, still April’s fool? I was letting her guide the entire throng into doing something to me. Was this all going to end very badly? Or was everyone in the audience going to yell “April Fools!” at me when I stood within the silver circle?

I looked at April, standing on the alter of the council of magic in front of the great Crystal. She looked confident, strong…and…happy?

Could this have been what she’d wanted all along?

“And now,” April flourished Desdemonia’s hands, “Comes the moment we’ve all been waiting for.” She beckoned to me.

I took a deep breath. This was it.

If I took that step forward, I could be leaving humanity behind forever, doomed to an eternity, or perhaps, many eternities as another being entirely. Something so completely alien, even aliens from another galaxy would be more familiar. In exchange for what?

I saw the scowling faces of my parents. I was happy they were there. Hopefully, they would make sure there was no funny business.

I looked at April, standing expectantly, the moment stretching out a bit to become uncomfortable. Was this what I really wanted?

I thought about April as a youngster, swinging on the monkeybars, laughing and hitting me on the head with her hairbrush. I thought about Jeff Farnum and the way we used to play video games, each of us smacking the other when we scored a hit or made a kill, or opened a scroll.

I thought of Mitzy and her smile, the way she was so sunny and quiet. So introverted and kind. I thought about Mom and the way she folded laundry on Sundays, and the way her eyes crinkled when she laughed. Dad’s hugs, Pete Vargas tutoring me in the ways of the Alpha, Miss Minnick—

Glancing the through audience I found her standing with the other infernals. She was in full Changed mode, her barbed tail dancing over one shoulder. I remembered Coach Walker as he waited expectantly for me to step up to the plate, swing away, make that home run, steal second base.

“Seth?” April said. “It’s time.”

I sighed and took a step forward. “I keep hoping you’re going to say ‘April Fools.’”

The crowd laughed a nervous titter in response.

April smiled at me with Desdemonia’s lips. “I wish that were true.”

I stepped into the circle of the great Crystal.

###

The Rite was pretty simple. “Everyone bow your heads,” April said.

April raised her arms, and I could hear the crystal hum to life in front of me. It was like standing in front of an immense speaker system that had just been powered up. It hummed to life, and began to glow softly.

April murmured something, and now Desdemonia stepped up to her. April said an incantation and gently touched Desdemonia between her brows. A soft light sprang from the crystal directly to Desdemonia, anchored to the place she’d been touched.

“My, um, Daughter will file among you and touch each of you on your forehead. This will connect you to the Crystal.”

Desdemonia stepped down from the dais, and began walking through the crowd, touching each person on the forehead. With each touch, a soft tendril extended from the Crystal. I closed my eyes and opened my Third eye and was able to see the pulsating energy as each person connected to the Crystal. Each person’s tendril was the color of their aura, filling the crystal with light in fractal patterns that radiated toward the center.

It was beautiful.

With each touch the Crystal glowed more intensely. She cycled through the crowd, touching each person, her heels clicking on the marble floor.

I could feel the buildup of heat. I also felt that strange tugging sensation inside me as if something was testing the line to feel the solidity of the connection.

“Better hurry,” I said.

April raised her arms and began chanting softly. The Crystal sprang to life and the entire dais began to rotate like a giant merry-go-round with me in the center.

The lights of the hall dimmed as energy flowed upward to the Crystal. April’s incantation raised to a fever pitch, and the rest of the Wytches in the audience including my mother took up the chant.

I saw April approach Wizard Blackwater. He had to stoop in order for April to touch his forehead, but the instant she did it, a fierce green light stronger than any of the other colors streaked into the Crystal. It almost overwhelmed the rest of the colors, but then the interior energy of the crystal shifted a bit and it joined the rest as a different facet of the prism.

A wind began to rise due to the motion of energy. I felt it blowing through my hair as I rotated on the Dais in front of the Crystal which was now glowing every color of the rainbow. From Desdemonia’s memories I was able to recognize the overpowered nature of the thing could possible cause it to explode—

April was screaming now as the wind became tempest. I felt like I was standing in front of a bonfire as energy from the crowd flowed into the crystal. It glowed more and more, becoming almost incandescent as it rotated.

Desdemonia returned and I heard her shout something to April. Raising her own arms, Desdemonia began matching April’s tone and incantation, becoming a louder voice in the din.

The crystal spun faster and faster as the heat rose, and the wind blew. I could hear the building around us trembling and I fervently hoped the masons who had built this edifice had planned for such structural punishment.

“Now!” Desdemonia screamed in April’s voice and April screamed a word, and motioned with both hands toward me.

A beam shot out from the crystal and enveloped me.

Immediately losing control of my Alpha, the change swept over me. I felt my limbs lengthening, my brow bunching up, my legs twisting and becoming more powerful. Hair sprang from every part of my body as my snout extended, my eyes burning with the force of the change against my will. Fingernails became talons, teeth lengthening into a mouthful of fangs, and I roared my fury and frustration at the bonds that had enveloped me.

Dimly, I perceived Desdemonia joining April, both of them wielding power, the multi-colored light flooded into me.

I stood in full Werewolf, feeling the power of the body. Roaring, I tried to exit the circle enclosing me, but was unable to move. Why wouldn’t they let me go!

As if in answer, I felt another beam of energy stab into me, then another, and another and another! Pain melted my brain as the energy literally boiled my blood inside my veins. I roared in confusion and agony as it felt like being dropped into a pit of molten magma.

Blessedly, it was all too much for my mind. I quickly lost consciousness as more and more and more beams of energy stabbed into my body. Whiteness enveloped me, and that was all I knew.

###

I awoke sometime later. Confusion radiated from my core. Where was I? What was I?

I put a hand to my head. I felt out of sorts, strange, but not in pain. Something was around my head, many somethings…they sort of felt like rope or some other kind of…

One of them moved.

“What the bloody fuck?” I said, sitting upright.

“Seth!” Someone yelled beside me. It sounded far away, distant. What the hell…

I turned and looked down. Somehow, I was above the dais. Everyone was down there, looking up at me. But I was sitting on the ground—

“Seth!” someone yelled again. It was a tiny someone.

My eyes fell on something else, something that shone, glittered. Pretty! I reached for it. It fit perfectly around my wrist, the multi-faceted jewel radiating in different colors that entranced me. My wrist looked strange, the skin darker—

I felt that strange tugging sensation again, pulling my lower regions. I looked down…

And saw immense breasts jutting out from my torso. They were covered in dark smooth skin. They lay upon a belly so expansive, taught and round I had a hard time believing it was a part of me. Beyond that, I saw thick legs leading down to strange, beady, seven-toed feet. I wiggled one toe experimentally and giggled as it wiggled back as if waving at me.

I looked at my hands. They too had seven digits, but not really fingers, more like stumpy lumps. My palms were also different, darker, dusky, the skin thicker, tough.

“Seth!” someone yelled up at me. “It’s me, son. Your father!”

I looked down at the little someone. My father?

Memories came flooding back in. What I’d been doing, where I was sitting. The Dais of the Council chamber where the great crystal. April had planned for this, that I’d be much larger than I’d been previously…

“Dad?” I said. My voice came out loud and…higher in pitch.

Raising my arm, the multifaceted jewel came into view. It was the crystal, the one on the dais, the one that was seven feet tall.

And it looked like a rather large bauble wrapped around my wrist.

I could see my face reflected back from dozens of surfaces on the jewel. Mouth, nose, eyes of glowing azure framed by arched brows. It was a pretty face with dark skin and a cute button nose. Something moved in my periphery…

Okay, they weren’t snakes on my head. I hadn’t turned into Medusa, and everyone was staring up at me and hadn’t been turned to stone. I grabbed one of them and brought it in front of my eyes. I was whiplike and long, and coiled around my finger. I realized with a bit of concentration I could control it, leave it coiled, or have it stretch out flat as an arrow, or let it hang loosely down over my rounded dark shoulder.

My hair had been replaced by tentacles.

I stood up. I had to crouch not to hit my head on the ceiling of the council chamber.

Looking down at my body, I recognized it being someone similar to the being from the noxious planet I’d visited. My skin was dusky, but instead of elephantine, it was smooth, thick. My eyes went up from my strange rounded feet with the seven digits, to solid legs and on up to my midsection where things underneath were hidden by that enormous belly.

I put my hands down there and found--Let’s just say, a more feminine contour than masculine. That plus the breasts—

I was female.

I was easily fifty feet tall. Maybe sixty. After examining myself, I carefully sat back down and leaned over as far as I could to speak to everyone in the chamber.

“Can you hear me?” I said, and everyone covered their ears.

“Seth, you’re going to have to whisper son!” Dad said. I was hard to believe the man I come to admire and respect barely came up to my shin.

“Sorry!” I whispered.

“How are you feeling?” Mom called up to me.

How was I feeling? I didn’t feel anything in particular, especially after the pain of the transformation. Plus, I didn’t feel like I was out of my mind with rage or anything…

“Good,” I said. “I mean…looks like I’m a girl now.”

I looked around the area. “Where’s April and Desdemonia?”

“They, uh…you were out for quite awhile, Seth,” Mom said. “Everyone is sort of regrouping for when the Who attacks. Do you feel anything?”

The Who. Jesus, I’d completely forgotten why we were there in the first—

I felt that tug again. “Ow!” I said, holding my stomach. It was very round and protruded out from my body. I was very fat.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think he’s coming,” I said.

I felt the tug again, longer this time, with more pressure. “Ow!”

Something moved inside.

I think realization dawned on all of us at the same time.

“Oh shit!” I said.

My mom screamed at my dad. “Jim, tell me we did not just provide the ‘Gateway’ for the Who!”

“I’ll get Desdemonia.” My dad said, and started running for the door.

Wizard Blackwater parted the crowd, coming forward. He planted his staff, facing me.

“This,” he said. “Is going to hurt.”

Another pain came, and this time I knew what they were.

Contractions.

I was about to give birth.

Desdemonia and the rest of the council filed into their respective places around the dais where I sat, holding my tentacular head.

“Seth!” April yelled up at me in Desdemonia’s voice. “I’m so sorry! I had no idea!”

“We need to reverse this!” I said, and everyone held their ears. My voice was rather high-pitched and strident.

“Even if we could, it would just find another way into this reality!” Desdemonia said in April’s voice. “This way, we can at least terminate it upon entry into this realm.”

Another contraction came. This one harder, lasting longer. I moaned with the pain, feeling it radiating out from my belly and through my back.

“Ohh, this is bad!” I said, and again people tried to shield themselves from my voice. I didn’t want to squish anyone, rolling around on the ground either. “Maybe I should go outside?”

“Into the park, yes.” Dad said.

I nodded, and rolled up onto my feet.

“Try not to crack the marble!” Desdemonia yelled up at me as I began to walk toward the exit. The doors were twenty feet tall, and I was a fifty foot tall pregnant female, so I had to crawl through the opening, my turgid stomach sliding across the floor.

I stood up outside, stretching my arms for the first time. Another contraction came, and I put my hands on my stomach, riding the wave. It was like someone was compressing my abdomen, making it hard as a rock.

Liquid gushed out from…down there, spilling onto the retinue who was following me.

“Ew, ick!” they said. Mom slipped and fell, and Dad tried to help her up.

“Sorry!” I said.

“I think her water just broke!” Mom said.

“Sorry!” I said again, and tried to walk toward the park. I got about halfway, when another contraction forced me to pause. Closing my eyes, I tried to make it stop, but the pain from my stomach contracting forced me to bend over.

“Don’t push!” Mom said. “It’s too early!”

I finally made it to the grassy area where I used to play baseball back when I was in sixth grade and happily male. I laid down in the outfield, moaning as another contraction came. I curled up into a ball, my hands around my belly and I could feel something moving inside.

“This can’t be happening, right?” I said as Mom and Dad approached me.

“We need to time the contractions.” Mom said. Let me know when—

“Now!” I cried out as the worst one yet overcame me. “Ooooh, it hurts!”

“Damn, I wish we had a way to prop her head up,” Desdemonia said.

“The field cover!” Dad said. “I’ll get some of the guys and drag it out here.”

Mom nodded and Dad ran off.

With April to my left, and Mom and Desdemonia to my right, I rolled onto my back with my knees up in the air.

“This is not what I agreed to!” I said.

“Nevertheless, it gives us a perfect opportunity to terminate it once it’s born!”

“What?” I said, but another contraction had me rolling back on my side. The tentacles on my head spasmed in time with the pain, rolling up into tiny balls as my abdomen compressed, and expanding as it relaxed.

Wizard Blackwater took up a position between my legs. I felt strangely vulnerable with him standing there, his staff crackling with energy.

“Wait!” I said. “What is it you’re…”

Again another contraction ripped through me. I felt like I was going to lose my mind.

“Breathe, son!” Mom said. “Short breaths! Huh Huh Huh Huh, like that!”

I nodded and tried to do as she said. The need to push was growing really hard.

Desdemonia walked around to stand with the Blackwater. “Spread your legs so we can see!”

I did as instructed.

“She’s fully dilated,” Desdemonia said. “Seth, when the next contraction comes I want you to push down hard!”

The men pulled the ground cover across from the dugout. I leaned up, then back onto the rolled cover and it did, at least, get my head off the ground.

Another contraction came, and I screamed.

“I can see the crown!” Desdemonia said. Wizard Blackwater’s staff erupted in flame.

“No!” Desdemonia said. “Wait until it’s fully delivered. You might injure her!”

The Wizard nodded and the staff went out.

“Wait, what are you going to do?” I said.

Mother came around to my line of sight. “Son, it’s the only way. We have to terminate it as it’s being born.”

“No!” I said, but another contraction ripped through me again and I felt like I was being torn in half.

“Push!” Desdemonia and Mom said at the same time.

I pushed.

Desdemonia ran around my legs, and stood beside Mom. “Seth, you’re going to have to lean down and pull it out. None of us are strong enough to do that.”

Another contraction came, and I screamed, sitting up and reaching my arms down. My stupid stumpy fingers could seem to get a purchase on the writhing, wriggling thing that was coming out of me. Not to mention my abdomen solidifying into a painful rocklike state.

“Yaaaaahhhh!!!” I screamed, closing my eyes against the intense pain and pressure. I wanted to be somewhere else, someone else. This couldn't be happening, couldn’t be happening!

Finally I managed to get both of my hands around the little chin and the back of its head. With the next contraction, I was able to pull it out of me, rocking my hips back and forth so each shoulder could come through. Then I lifted under the little arms, and brought my son into the world, screaming and crying.

I saw both Desdemonia and the Wizard spinning magic fireballs.

“No!” I said, bringing my child up to my breast.

“Seth, put the baby down!” Desdemonia yelled. Her eyes had faded to black orbs.

“No,” I said, attempting to turn away from them. “My Baby!”

“It’s not a baby, Seth.” My father stood next to me. “It’s the Who!”

“How do you know it’s evil?” I said. “It’s just a baby!”

I cradled it, crying softly. The little guy had tentacles where it’s nose should be and shining yellow eyes. It mewled cutely, and I instinctively held it to my breast.

A bolt tore into my side. It felt like a pinprick. I glanced down and saw the Wizard holding his staff.

“Seth,” April yelled. “Put it down!”

Both she and Desdemonia had roiling balls of fire, easily the size of my baby’s head. I didn’t know what kind of damage they could do to him—

But I wasn’t going to let it happen.

“No!” I said, standing up. “Leave us alone!”

Desdemonia released her ball of fire upwards. I turned, and it hit my shoulder. It stung a little, but felt like a warm piece of bread had hit me.

“Stop it!” I said.

The Wizard let loose with a blast this time, and I turned again. This time it felt like a warm sponge.

The infernals grouped around me, and started hitting me with blast after blast of balefire. These hurt a bit more, but were an annoyance more than anything.

“Listen!” I said. “I’m not going to let you kill him!”

I got up and started into a shambling run. I knew parts of…me were still sliding out down there but I had to get away from them, regroup, collect my thoughts.

One thing I was not going to do was let them take my baby from me.

Helicopters swarmed around me, letting loose missiles and other projectiles. I twisted and turned from the little biting stings as they hardly penetrated my tough skin.

The little one was crying. I was worried one of the projectiles might penetrate his little eyes. I started to run toward the entrance. As I ran, my hair tentacles expanded, and I suddenly could what; see? Hear? Smell? Taste? All the dimensions around me.

It was like seeing color for the first time, smelling a rose, tasting a strawberry. I stopped, and multi-cosm opened to me.

“Ooooh, pretty!” I said, as realities flowered in front, beside and behind me. The English language doesn’t have enough words to describe the sensations I felt. How do you explain the color red to a blind person who has never seen?

I saw one that looked nice, shuffled and did a little hop…

And winked out of existence.

The next period of my life lasted…well…an unfathomably long time.

Just a few highlights:

---

• My son grew quickly. And was almost constantly hungry. That meant parts of me grew quickly to fill his never full stomach.
• Dimensions do not go on for eternity. Sometimes they end abruptly. I won’t say I might have been the cause, but I won’t say that I wasn’t either. Hey, a girl needs to learn, right? Mistakes were made.
• Being a fifty-foot multi-dimensional being plays hell with the fashion sense. I enjoyed finding pretty things to adorn my body. Luckily, since I’d taken the Crystal from the original reality, I still had a gateway back home. I just chose not to use it because they were so rude!
• When junior was a teenager, he liked fire. I found it was better he learned hard lessons, but he insisted on melting several realities into slag. Will the multi-cosm ever miss them? I doubt it.
• We searched for others like us but never found anyone.
• I invented a new language to incorporate the ability to cross realities.
• Math is stupid. And very limiting.
• We found another race of dimensional super-beings. They were not friendly. Junior and I took care of business. It was a proud mama moment.
• There are some places in the Universes that can make you weep with joy. And others that can make you scream in terror.
• Black holes are tasty. The best treats can always be found there.
• Dark Matter is not actually dark.
• Infinity is overrated.
• Junior became…infected is the closest word…with a ViralCosm. He didn’t expire, he…melded. I wish I could be more descriptive but it was too painful.

---

Finally, sad and alone, I used the Crystal from my wrist to portal back home.

Due to the nature of the multi-cosm, I was able to re-enter the same instant I left.

I came back and the helicopters were swarming, the infernals were blasting, and the rest of Hill Valley was trying to murder me.

I sighed, and reassembled myself back down into Seth.

I hadn’t been a man in so long, it took me a few moments to remember.

“Seth?” Mom said, running up to me. “Is that really you?”

“Yeah,” I said. Speech. So archaic.

“What happened to the Baby?”

My human brain didn’t have the capacity to even process how to relate what had happened to me. Eons had passed. Eternities. How do you describe that?

“He’s…gone.”

“I’m sorry honey.”

The war, apparently over, the helicopters and planes returned to whatever airforce base they’d come from. It made me laugh to think they thought they could ever physically overcome a being like I was. And what Junior had been. Even the tenth of the tenth iota of power could have wiped out this entire existence.

But Mom was here.

“Seth!” Dad said, running up, breathless. “I thought we were going to lose you?”

“Nah,” I said. I ran a hand over my Dad’s head, wiping away his Were nature. It was a glitch in the matrix of this reality that had lead to its existence anyway.

“Seth?” Desdemonia said, making it to our area. She still wore April’s lovely body. April also trundled up, breathless in Desdemonia’s carcass.

“This isn’t going to work,” I said and snapped my fingers, crossing their auras and Essence back into their original locations.

“What?” April said, looking down at her body. “I’m back in my body!”

I nodded, rolling my eyes. Child’s play really. But I didn’t want them to know it. Magic was really just an offshoot of paranormal dynamics afterall.

Jeff Farnum trotted up. “Jesus, man, you scared me.”

“Hey bro,” I said, wrapping him in my arms. It felt good to be a human and able to feel again.

No, I would not think about the way his eyes found mine as he was encorpsulated into that other realm—

I bit back tears, putting my arms around Jeff and Mom.

“How was this done?” Desdemonia said. “Return us back this instant!” Her eyes faded to black.

I realized as a human I was now as vulnerable as I’d been before. I just had the benefit of a bit more knowledge.

With a bit of a twist and a yoink, I pulled Desdemonia’s magic away and wrapped it around my finger. A finger that still held a much miniaturized version of the Crystal. I pulled it into the device, removing it from her reality completely.

Her eyes faded back to the blue/gray they’d always been. “What have you done?!??”

I shrugged. “Look, Magic shouldn’t really exist. This reality is governed by entropy and temporal physics. To have a power that violates that is really not cool.”

“How dare you lecture me!” she said.

The Wizard Blackwater portaled in beside her, Brother Langmore beside him.

I sighed, and performed the same action, removing magic from their vocabulary.

The former wizard blustered and blundered. Now human and very much a victim of his age and infirmity, he looked at us with rheumy eyes. “What have you done to me?”

“What I’ll do to any ‘magical’ being I encounter now,” I said. “Removed your abilities. You’ll live the rest of your life as biology intended.”

Mom, April, Dad, Jeff and I continued walking over their strenuous concerns.

###

Mitzy had found her way to a rain-forest in the Yucatan peninsula. I used the crystal to portal over. I waved my hand over her form and returned her to humanity.

She crouched, naked, near the tree she’d been pollinating.

“Mitzy?” I said, helping her stand. It took her a few moments to remember how to human.

“Seth?” she asked, an incredulous sound in her voice.

“Yeah! Hey, how are you?”

She looked around her, her arms working back and forth as if she were trying to fly. “Umm…what did you do to me?”

“I returned you to humanity, of course.” I smiled. “Couldn’t have you living forever as a butterfly, could I?”

She looked sad at that. “Ummm.”

“You did want to be returned, didn’t you?”

She started to cry. “No?”

“But what about your family? Your friends? Me?” I said.

She nodded. “Oh, Seth, I know, but you can’t imagine how wonderful it is to be a butterfly! I mean…the places I’ve been, and seen…it’s all so…amazing!”

I thought about all the distant places in the macrocosm that I found beautiful. Hollow, now that Junior was gone, but still beautiful.

“Yeah, actually. I can imagine.”

“So can you…put me back? I’m much happier that way, I promise!”

I smiled. “If that’s what you really want.”

“It is!” She gave me a big hug. “But I am happy I could hug you one last time.”

“Well, if you ever want to return…you know how to find me.”

She nodded and smiled. “Maybe…someday…I’ll take you up on that.”

But she never did.

###

I pulled a bag of popcorn out of the microwave. Pouring it into a bowl, I salted it, then took it over to where April and I were sitting on the couch.

“I can’t believe it all,” she said. “You were a Mother!”

I smiled, feeling the bite of tears.

“And…now you’re like…the only person in the world who has magic.”

“Yeah…when I need it.”

I wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close. She’d gone back to her natural brown hair, and subdued makeup. I preferred it much better than the goth Lolita looks of the past.

“And the Who…is truly gone?”

I nodded, feeling sad.

She shook her head, and I pressed the power button on the TV remote.

“Did you enjoy being female?”

I nodded. “I was…female…for a whole lot longer than I was ever male. Still kind of feel that way, actually.”

“Then why are you still a man?”

I shrugged. “Just seems the right thing to do.”

She gave me a punch in the shoulder.

“Ow!” I said. “What the hell?”

“Stupid,” she said. “Why do you think I was feminizing you?”

“Wait,” I said. “You mean you want me to be a girl?”

She shrugged, looking away from me.

I put a finger under her chin, and turned her head back to me. “April?”

“I just thought…it would be fun to see what it’d be like between us. I mean, I love you, don’t get me wrong, but I have such triggers around men. I wondered if I might enjoy—“

I watched her face fall, her cheeks become flushed.

“Being a lesbian?” I said.

She shrugged. “With you.”

I nodded. Getting up, I went into the bedroom. I reached between realities and found the Crystal ring, and slid it onto my finger.

Closing my eyes, I thought of myself…my old self. The Multi-Dimensional mother I had been. I imagined her as a human, with human skin, hair, nails, and everything. Then I passed a hand over my image, and felt the change settle over me.

A lovely dark-skinned woman looked back at me from the mirror. Long dark hair draped over one shoulder with gleaming smooth skin. With another wave, I was wearing a brown silk top with white cotton pants. It clung in all the right places, and displayed things nicely.
I walked back out to the living room.

April squealed. “Oh my God. I didn’t think you’d actually do it!”

I turned slowly in front of her. “You like?”

She nodded enthusiastically. “I wanna know what you taste like!”

I slid back onto the couch beside her and we kissed.

Later, as she slept, I thought about the many many adventures I’d had, and remembered my son. I’d been able to teach him how to be kind, to enjoy beauty, to laugh, run, play. The Universe teaches us pain, solitude, fear and all the offshoots. It takes a relationship to build joy, instill it in others, and find laughter.

My son turned out to be a kind, gentle, sensitive being. It took others to impose their fear to cast him a monster. No-one is born a monster, they are created by the relationships surrounding them.

I snuggled down deep with the girl I loved and breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, I slept.

--------------------------------------------------------

A sincere THANK YOU to everyone who has followed this crazy tale. It was mainly an escape from thinking of horrid current events.

As always if you enjoyed this, you can find my work at https://rainemonday.gumroad.com. I've removed all my books from Amazon due to content violation restrictions and have begun transferring everything over to gumroad. I also have a very sporadic blog at https://rainemonday.com and a patreon at https://patreon.com/rainemonday.

If you'd like to get in touch: [email protected]. If you have an idea for a story or graphic novel, shoot me an email, you never know!

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Chapter One

She was tiny but fierce, and she was kicking my ass.

"Murph!" I said, "That's not even fair! You're cheating!"

"Quit being a whiny ass, Dresden, and take your medicine."

We both made a few more moves, and my character got shot. Blood spattered on my side of the screen, and DEAD popped up on my hud.

"Jesus, Dresden, how is it you defeated a literal pack of Werewolves, and you can't last fifteen minutes in Arena of Combat?"

"Look," I said, throwing the controller down. "In order to play these games with you, I've had to basically give up magic. You know what that's like, Murph?"

She shrugged, "my every day?"

"Your everyday minus maybe an arm or a leg, perhaps."

I tugged at the collar around my neck. Butters had created a gizmo that nullified my magical field so I could take part in electronic society. I think he did it in self-interest after I poofed his latest supercomputer when I bumbled in without warning a few months ago. With the Covid-19 outbreak, Murph and I had been on an extended vacation, alone together in her little house, and we decided we'd try it sans-magic so I could finally use the microwave without causing it to explode.

"Stop being a baby, Dresden. I won fair and square. You can't use magic in a video game anyway."

I nodded, crossing my arms and clenching my jaw. It just wasn't fair. She, Butters, Billy, and all the rest had a lifetime of experience growing up with electronic devices.

"Wanna watch a movie?" She said, sliding next to me and putting my arm around her. She fit nicely. We fit nicely together. It was nice to have such long arms that could completely reach around her and pinch or caress any part of her at any time.

It was nice.

I smiled and leaned over, kissing her softly on the lips. "That, or we could…"

"Jesus, Dresden, are you perpetually horny?"

"Hey, I have a lot of time to make up for." I used my long arms to great advantage to caress certain body parts I knew she enjoyed caressing. I kissed the side of her neck.

"Mmmm," she moaned softly, leaning into me.

I inhaled her perfume, her essence. We had been together for almost a month, alone in the little house. We rarely went out, only to get grocery staples, otherwise sheltering in place like the rest of the country.

Luckily, the supernatural world seemed to be on something of a break too. No ghosts had been haunting, no werewolves had been turning, no ghouls had been…ghouling…the world seemed to have hit the pause button, and I could hear birds chirping in the morning in the middle of Chicago again.

She turned and took my face in both of her hands and kissed me deeply. I liked kissing. I especially liked kissing Karrin Murphy, formerly of CPD. She had the most kissable lips in the history of kissable lips.

We were just about to retire to the bedroom, both of us working ourselves up to a full ardor when the doorbell rang.

"You expecting anybody?" Murph said in a husky voice, as she panted softly.

"No," I said, breathing a little heavy myself.

"Fuck, this better be good."

I got up off the couch, trying to arrange…things…so as not to be too evident.

"Make them go away, and I'll meet you in the bedroom," Murphy said, with a little glint in her eye.

I knew that glint, she wasn't going to be wearing much when I went into the bedroom, and I grinned. "Sounds like a plan."

She bounded off the sofa and down the hallway as I walked to the door and opened it.

A young woman stood in the foyer. Tall, she had long blonde hair, light blue eyes, and was wearing a white blazer, slacks, and a blue blouse. She stood, looking at me for a moment.

"Can I help you?"

She opened her mouth. "H…h…" she stammered, then tears filled her eyes. "Harry?"

I frowned. "Yes?"

"It's me, Harry." She stepped up to me, throwing her arms around me and giving me a full-body hug. "Susan."

"Wait; what?" I said, pulling away from her.

"It's me, Susan Rodriguez." She tried to hug me again, but I held her at arm's length.

"The last I saw Susan, she was Vampiric, Latina, and… dead."

"I know, Harry." The woman backed up a step. "I promise it's me. Do your soul gaze, then you'll know."

I touched the collar around my neck. "I can't at the moment. No magic. Thanks for stopping by, though." I started to close the door.

"Harry, it's me!" The door closed, and I walked down to the bedroom.

"Who was it?" Murphy said.

"Some crazy. Said she was Susan." I started to take off my clothes.

I was halfway to being undressed when the doorbell rang again.

Murphy got up this time. "I'll deal with her." She put on a robe and walked out of the room.

Susan had been my…well, my ex-girlfriend. We'd been very close, so close, in fact, Margaret Angelica Mendoza had been borned. But Susan had become a half-vampire and long story short, I'd been forced to kill her on the altar of the Red Court, thereby murdering every Red Court vampire in the process in a giant uber spell.

Murphy didn't come back. I could hear them in the living room, murmuring. Murphy's voice was a bit strident.

I sighed. This was not how I wanted to spend my isolation. I tugged my sweats back on, and pulled a t-shirt over my head and walked out into the living room.

"Please, Harry!" The woman said. "You have to believe me!"

I sighed. "Look, lady. I don't know who you are, or what rock you came from but I suggest going right back—"

"Is this your summer home in Zurich?"

"Hah." I said…" Very fun—" I paused. Something about that line rang a bell. The first time we were going to go out on a date, a minor demon showed up and spoiled things. I had used that line when she asked if it was my apartment—

"Susan?" I said, my heart suddenly starting to pound in my chest.

"Police having you put in overtime, Harry?" She said, glancing at Susan. And it was another line from our almost first date.

"Murph, get this thing off me. I need to soul gaze her."

"But Harry—"

"Murph!" I said, pulling on the collar.

She sighed. "Well, kneel down, you big oaf."

I knelt, and Susan pulled the hair back at the nape of my neck and pressed a combination of buttons to allow the collar to slip off. Immediately, I felt the presence of magic again, and I inhaled deeply, feeling the power of the earth, the air, the spirits around me. It was like breathing again, as if I were taking a breath on a mountain top in Switzerland. The sweet, sweet feeling of power in all it's glory.

I looked over at the woman, and we met eyes. It all came rushing back. Her passion, the motivation to go, to do, to act. It was always what drove her forward, digging up stories for the Arcane, stories of the supernatural, and then she had become part of the story when she'd been bitten by Bianca St. Claire a vampire of the Red Court. By confessing my love to her, she'd been able to stop her blood lust and I could feel how that had hit her, my love, that confession. It held her like a beacon of light in the darkness, driving her to join the Fellowship of St. Giles. Her pursuit of righteousness led her to South America, where she fought Red Vampires to save children. He saw the first, and only time they'd made love, bound by the Sidhe rope it had again held her monster at bay, and led to our daughter, Maggie.

I blinked away tears as I pulled my gaze from her.

"Well?" Murphy said.

"It's her," I said, walking over and sitting down on the sofa. The console game gave a high pitched squeal then belched out smoke.

"Dammit," Murphy whispered. "We just got that."

I couldn't wrap my brain around this. Susan was alive? How? When…"How?" I said.

"May I sit?" She indicated a chair across from me.

"Of course," Murphy said, a little too loudly. "I'll go make coffee…" then she mumbled something I couldn't hear, stalking off into the kitchen.

Susan sat primly on the edge of the chair, tucking her skirt over her legs. "Apparently, there were irregularities with my death. Or so I was told."

I rolled my eyes. "You too?"

She glanced at me. "Wait, when did you die, Harry?"

I shrugged, long story. "So…irregularities?"

She nodded. "Yes. I got to this weird place, and this train was going to just run over me. Someone pulled me off the tracks just in time.

"Carmichael?"

"Who?" She looked at me with a strange expression on her face. "No, it was actually my Nana Concha."

"Your Grandmother?"

She nodded. "Anyway, Nana Concha took me through this weird city, I didn't even recognize, and told me I was…En Medio Puesto. The middle place."

I nodded, remembering. "Right."

"She took me to La Oficina, where someone…"

"Amitiel?" I said.

"Yes! How did you know? She took me to the Editor, but she wasn't really the Editor, she was like…oh, I don't know…"

Murphy came back in with a tray holding three coffee cups. She set them down on the coffee table, then handed Susan and me a cup each. She took a cup, then came and sat next to me on the couch, purposely pulling my arm around her before taking a sip.

"She was actually the mother of someone I knew. A former editor. She had passed away from cancer years ago, but…anyway. She said I couldn't be sent along yet, that I needed to "Atone for my sins."

"What does that mean?" I said, taking a sip, with my non-Murphy holding hand.

"Right?" she said. "I asked her, but the Editor said she didn't know, but that she could send me back wherever I wanted."

"And you chose Chicago."

Susan shrugged, taking a sip of coffee. "Well, I didn't know where else to go, or who else to reach out to, Harry…" she gave a look at Murphy.

"It's been a while since Chichen Itza, Susan."

She nodded. "I figured as much when I woke up in this body. I'm only seventeen. It took me a few days to figure out how to catch an Uber, and then we had the whole Covid lockdown, and my mom wouldn't let me out of the house."

I chuckled at that.

She shook her head, her pretty face flushing red. "Anyway, but now I'm here, and I don't know what to do."

I stared at her. At this pretty blonde woman, girl really, who held the spirit of my dead…fiance? Girlfriend? Baby Mama? I started to tremble a bit, and I realized I was on my way to a full-on meltdown. I had so many emotions mixed up with this woman, with what had happened, with what I'd been forced to do, I didn't know how to react.

Murphy sensed this and looked up at me. "You need a moment, don't you, Dresden?"

I swallowed past the giant elephant that had decided to use my throat as a resting place. "Yeah."

Murphy got up. "Look, Susan, or…whoever you might happen to be right now."

"Jessica Finch."

"Okay, so should I call you Susan or Jessica?"

She shrugged. "Probably Jessica since that's how everyone really knows me."

"Okay, so look, Jessica," Murphy emphasized the last word someone harshly. "You can give us contact info, right?"

She nodded. "I have a phone."

"Right. So, you don't know what happened after…well, what happened. Harry has been through a lot, and he needs some time to process."

"I can speak for myself, thank you, Murph."

Murphy nodded and held up her hands.

"Uh…Jessica…I…uh…"

"My point exactly. You go back home, and Dresden and I will have a good think, and then we'll make contact with you again, okay? You can't stay here, considering this virus, and…well…"

She looked at me with an expression that probably meant something to another woman.

"Of course." Susan/Jessica stood up.

"Give us a bit, and we'll give you a call, okay?"

She nodded. "The uber is waiting for me, anyway."

"Perfect," Murphy said with a tight smile. She escorted Susan to the door.

"Bye, Harry. Let me know when you're ready to…you know, talk, or whatever."

"Uh, yeah. I will." I said, but I could already feel the floodgates of emotion starting to spill.

Murphy bid her goodbye, then closed the door.

She came over to me, again finding her way under my arm, not saying anything.

We sipped our coffee for a moment or two.

"Oh my God," I said, and the dam finally broke.

I wept.

Chapter Two

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Okay, so that wasn't easy. Look, it's not every day the woman you asked to marry rises from the dead, knocks on your door, and wears the body of a seventeen-year-old cheerleader. It was going to take me a minute or ten-thousand to wrap my brain around it.

No, I shouldn't have sent her away. No, I shouldn't have allowed that to get to me, but after all the guilt, all the pain, all the suffering, Maggie being raised by the Carpenters, me being dead, my attempt at suicide…I wasn't in the best of shape for the night.

Sometime around midnight, I came up for air and found myself in our bed. With Murphy. Her arms were around me, and I'd been sleeping/weeping for awhile.

"Sorry," I said, pulling myself together and wiping my face.

"For?"

I cleared my throat. "I just had a few too many emotions to deal with."

She nodded and kissed my head.

"You know, your arms are perfectly configured for snuggling as well as TaiKwonDo, or krav maga, or whatever ancient martial art you practice."

She chuckled and scooted up. "Aikido and I'm starving."

"Me too!" I said. "Pizza?"

"Double Pepperoni from Nino's."

"On it," I said, hopping out of bed.

I padded into the kitchen and lifted the actual telephone. Cell phones don't work when I'm fully magical, so I didn't even want to try. It felt like I'd been magically offline for so long already it took a moment to remember not to pick up a mobile device.

After placing our order, I grabbed a can of Coke from the fridge and walked back to the bedroom. I sat down in a comfortable leather chair and looked out the window.

The house wasn't Murphy's old house. We'd rented a small place in Lakeview, which had a nice view of Lake Michigan. It was expensive but quaint and had been recently renovated. After CPD settled with Murphy, and after several…well, investments from our last caper where we liberated some treasure from Hades in the underworld, we both were doing pretty well, financially speaking, and our life had been upgraded. Neither one of us wanted to go hog wild, but we could afford a beautiful place that fit with our peculiar lifestyles. Murphy continued her weapons and self-defense training and was offering classes at the Y to disadvantaged youth, and I played D&D with Butters and the Alphas…well, before Covid took over our lives.

The moon had risen, and the lake lay placid and beautiful. With COVID, Chicago had turned into an idealistic wonderland with clean air, zero traffic, and gorgeous vistas.

"So," Murphy said. "Susan."

"Yes." I took a sip of Coke, then set it down. "Susan."

"So, what are we going to do about her?" Murphy said.

I nodded. "Well, there are...considerations."

"Yes," Murphy said, putting her head on her fist. "Many considerations."

I nodded and put up a finger. "There's her age."

Murphy frowned. "Why is her age a consideration?"

"Well," I coughed. "I mean, she's in the body of a seventeen-year-old."

"Pfft, Dresden, you wizard types are always finding ways around that."

"Not for Anastasia Luccio, there isn't."

She nodded. "Good point. You guys haven't been able to figure that body swap out, have you?"

"Nope."

Luccio had been swapped into her current younger blonde body during the fight with a monster called The Cryptkeeper. She had taken Luccio's body, and Luccio had been stuck in the blonde's body. When the Cryptkeeper had been killed, Luccio had been stranded. We, the collective we of the white and grey councils, had yet to untangle the knot of spell threads, keeping her stuck.

"So, she too might be stuck."

"Yes, and if she's seventeen, and Maggie is five..."

"Lord, that is only a twelve-year difference."

"Number two," I said, not wanting to be deterrent. "There's you and me."

"That goes without saying, Dresden, unless you are thinking you two might—"

"Nope, that train has long since sailed."

"Cuz, you and me, are like this." She put her fingers together.

"And don't forget like this," I said, making finger puppets in the air of us getting busy, and then a circle and a hole—

"Dresden!" She squealed, putting her hands over mine.

I grinned.

"Number three," Murphy said. "What does that even mean, atone for your transgressions? How actionable is that?"

"Right?" I said. "It's like saying mend your fences."

"Develop your portfolio." She snapped her fingers.

"Seek, and ye shall find."

"Achieve your potential."

"Okay, enough," I said. "It's a platitude, but the way these things work is until she can meet what every requirement of whatever this is, she's stuck here without being able to move on or whatever."

The doorbell rang, and I went and took the pizza from the pizza man, giving him a healthy tip. I took the pizza back into the bedroom and set it on the bed. We sat and scarfed for a few minutes.

"Number four," I said, holding up four fingers. "COVID Virus, I mean hello!"

"Exactly," Murphy said. "COVID kills. Why endanger our lives chasing after some vague...something."

"Yes," I said.

"We could totally be arrested for being out and about chasing transgressions."

"Definitely."

"So..." Murphy said.

I sat and chewed. "She...deserves..." I stopped talking, swallowing the elephant in my throat.

"She deserves to see her daughter."

I nodded, unable to speak.

"And," Murphy took my hands in hers, looking at me in the eyes. "Maybe you are one of those transgressions she is trying to atone for?"

"Me?" I blinked. "I'm the one killed her if you remember."

"You had to kill her to prevent her from becoming a monster."

"Well, yes..."

"And who does that to the person they love most in the world?"

I thought about that. It was true; we had both been...used, I suppose, was the word for it, by the Fellowship of St. Giles and by Martin to set up the entire Red Court into being destroyed in one fell spell. With the death of Martin at Susan's hands...or...fangs, she became the youngest vampire of the Red Court. And with a swipe of the knife, I saved a child; I ended a war, blah blah blah.

I breathed for a few moments, feeling a bit dizzy with all the emotions and memories.

"So, I guess we give her the opportunity to atone with you," Murphy said in a clipped voice. "But, Dresden, let me make something perfectly clear — " She grabbed my hair, pulling my head up and looking into my eyes. "At no time are you to allow her to atone in any other way beside completely clothed. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," I said.

"We are in a long term, committed relationship. You do not have permission to fraternize or engage in any sexually related acts outside of this specific partnership.

I grinned at that. "Yes, Captain."

"I want your word on that, Dresden."

A wizard's word was an important thing, indeed. Murphy knew exactly what she was doing here. I agreed to something that could have magical consequences if I broke this covenant in any way.

"I hereby agree."

"And thereby, we make it so."

I smiled, climbing back into the bed. "Want some of that lingus stuff right now?"

"Jesus, you're romantic, Harry."

"I know, right? I should be called Cyrano de BergerWizard."

She giggled. I liked making her giggle. I liked the way her eyes crinkled up, and the way her mouth opened when she was laughing. Making Murphy laugh was my new quest in life. I could spend my exceedingly long lifetime, finding inventive ways of making her laugh.

I tickled her lightly as we slunk under the covers, and she giggled a bit more. She stroked the hair out of my eyes. "Someone needs a haircut."

"I can wizard it short tomorrow."

"No, I like cutting your hair, Dresden."

I smiled, kissing her full on the mouth. Murphy was about the only person in the world I trusted to cut my hair. Hair could be used in various and nefarious ways, and we were always careful to burn it after any trim.

Murphy responded by arching her back up to me, her body pressing against mine in such a delightful way. I tasted her, grinding my hips, feeling her ardor. We moved so perfectly together, her body and mine, entwined, enmeshed, our souls melding, fusing—it was almost like magic, the way we moved together. I could feel tingles in my toes as my magic awoke giving a whole new meaning to our lovemaking. I truly gave into it, gave into us.

It was like with each breath I took; I breathed her in a little more, and as I exhaled a little of me mixed with more of her. We panted, moving, colliding together and then thrusting, the feeling of mixing and melding so great, so wonderful, so climatic…

We parted, her arms around me, kissing the top of my head, and I felt so warm, so secure in her arms, a glowing feeling coming from my center that felt so nice. I trembled, the orgasm still flowing through me, but realized something was different, it wasn't coming from just one area of my body, but from all over, almost like…

I blinked. Murphy leaned back, eyes closed, but it wasn't her own eyes closing, she closed my eyes.

"Uh…Murphy?" I said, and if I needed any more confirmation that something was wrong, this was it. I spoke in her voice.

"Mmmmm?" She…he said.

"Something has happened."

She opened my eyes. It was strange to see my face looking down on me, the brown in my eyes with little flecks of gold. Realization dawned on my face. "Ah, crap."

I sat up and could feel…stuff…leaking out of me.

"Ewww!" I said.

"How could this have happened?" He spoke in my voice but trying to use it in the higher registers, which made it squeak.

I sighed. "Just another magical day in the neighborhood."

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

"So what the fuck happened?" Murphy said, looking down at our bodies.

I sighed and stood up. Damn, Murphy's body felt good. I was toned, flexible, and even with our…workout, I felt terrific. I needed something for the ick though, so I went into the restroom and cleaned Murphy's body up.

Now, I won't go into detail about Murphy's body, or how all her nice and jiggly parts felt, but I will say I enjoyed myself. I came back in to find Murphy standing in my sweats and t-shirt.

"How the hell do I go pee, Dresden."

"Um, point, shoot, and let nature take its course."

He shook his head, stomping into the bathroom. "I feel like I'm all knees and elbows. I hate this."

"We'll get it sorted as soon as you come out of there, I promise."

Soul transfers were not unknown in the wizarding world. And since I had the Winter Mantle, and been sans magical for the last few weeks, it wasn't too surprising I lost a bit of control there. The winter mantle causes me to be a bit Aggro, even in the best of times, and I forgot how powerful I was. We were lucky that this was the only thing that happened; it could have been much much worse.

He came back in, sitting down in my chair. "Okay, put me back in my body, Wizard."

I nodded. "We will, but we have to be careful with this. I could screw a lot of stuff up with it, so I don't want to make any mistakes."

"Why can't you just…I dunno, wiggle your nose, or blink your eyes and put us back?"

I glared at him. "Murph, you of all people should know magic doesn't work like that."

He chuckled softly. "Damn, now I get what people mean when I give them 'the look.' I'm a little frightening, aren't I?"

"Damn straight. And I'm not even holding a weapon."

He chuckled again. "Okay, so what do we need to do."

I sat and thought. "Well, I really would like to talk to Bob about it, but essentially what we experienced was a bit of Tantric Magic."

He nodded. "I figured as much; I read some about it."

This startled me. "Oh? Do tell."

He shook his head. "It was something from the past. Shut up and get to the part where I get my body back."

"Okay, so Tantric magic. It has, I dunno, eight, nine different steps we'd need to prepare. I think we crashed through them all while we were making love."

He nodded. "So, we make love again, and it reverses?"

"It's not that simple. We entered a very high state of consciousness, Murph, and getting back isn't going to be easy. But the quicker we do it, the easier it will become because right now, your soul wants to be back in this body, and my soul wants to be back in my body. The longer we take, the more our soul grows to enjoy the vessel it contains. Therefore the harder it becomes to reach that tantric state."

"Believe me; my soul does not want to be stuck in this body."

That hurt. A bit. I nodded.

He rolled his eyes. "Look, you big galoot, I love you. I love you more than anyone I've ever loved before, okay? But that doesn't mean, in any universe I want to be you, okay?"

"Okay." I couldn't help myself; my eyes watered a bit.

He got up and crossed over to me. "And now I've made you cry."

I shrugged my shoulders.

He rubbed my back.. "I'm sorry. That was kind of insensitive of me."

"It's okay, I do understand," I said it, but my…Murphy's voice cracked in the middle of it. Hells Bells, I'd cried more in the last 12 hours than I'd ever cried in my life.

"Fuck, Dresden. I'm really sorry."

I took a breath. "Okay, anyway. Where was I?"

"Tantric magic, and our souls."

"Right. So, in order to swap back, we need to soul gaze. I didn't realize we had been doing that, but we were both caught up in the moment and soul gaze, plus sex, plus both of us wanting to be part of the other, equals, I'm you and ipso facto."

"Okay."

"So, can you do it?" I said.

"What, soul gaze? Yes, we've done it before."

"Well, yes, that, but also…this isn't going to work if a part of you can't be inserted into a part of—"

"I get it, and yes. Well, at least I think so. It is kinda hot that we switched like this."

"Okay, then. Take off your clothes."

He complied. It was strange to look at my six-foot-nine self. I could see that I'd been working out, and it was looking pretty good if I must say. I had shoulders, and was that a six-pack?

"Mmm, okay. Wow, it's strange to look at myself like this," I said.

"Back atcha, Dresden. I didn't really know how svelte I was, and my ass rocks."

I giggled. I noticed when I did that parts of him awakened.

"Mmm good, so maybe this won't be as hard as we thought. We obviously are narcissistic enough to enjoy how our bodies appear."

"Okay, so what's next, Dresden."

"Let's kneel on the bed. We need to look into each other's eyes."

He complied.

I knelt to face him. I could feel parts of my body softening at his gaze, and other parts growing quite firm.

"Look into my eyes, and let your soul see mine."

He did. We did. The soul-gaze started.

It always takes a few moments for images to surface. Staring into another person's face, especially when that face is you own face is weird. I had scars, I never knew I even had, like when did I get the one to the left of my left eye? If it had only been a few millimeters to the right, I would be blind. And wow, my eyes really look different from here. I always thought they were dog-poop brown but there were little flecks of gold--

Vague faces pushed out from a gray background, resolving into the faces of people she knew, or loved, or had caused her pain. Her sister, her mother, Jack Murphy - her father. Some of the faces I recognized, some I didn't. My face.

Scenes followed next. I could see from little Karrin Murphy's point of view, dressed in a pretty dress, late for a birthday party. She carried a present, but when she got to the party, everyone teased and mocked her so much she threw the present in the face of the birthday girl and everyone laughed at her.

I saw her father, Jack Murphy, someone I'd met in the Between. I saw him drinking, his head bowed low. He saw emergency vehicles through little Karrin's eyes, the body in a body bag, the zipper not quite done up and Jack's hand slipping out, the ring on his pinky dropping to the ground. It was a black cat on the face, for special investigations, the unit Jack worked for.

He saw a young Karrin graduating the academy, all smiles as she walks across the stage to be met by Rich. They hug, and Karrin holds his hand as they walk off the stage. In another scene she opens her bedroom door to find Rich with her sister Lisa, a furious rage descending as she throws dishes and flatware and them both as they scurry out of the house.

I felt her pain, her anguish, from a life lived so fraught with strife. Turning to police work as the only outlet she had, becoming head of SI, like her father, and then meeting me and the deep love and devotion she truly felt for me.

I opened my palm, and he touched his to mine. Staring into each others eyes, each brimming with tears, I found his mouth, kissing deeply, breathing his breaths. We settled down onto the blanket, my legs twining with his and—

Silent thunder echoed around us. I could feel a presence in the room

"Well, isn't this a pretty picture." A feminine voice said from the foot of our bed.

Squealing, I leaped up, ready to fight and saw someone standing there, glowing a faint blue that highlighted her angular face and white hair bound up in a tight bun. A dark blue dress stretched behind her with a white shawl around her shoulders

Mab. The Queen of Air and Darkness, had arrived.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

"Well, if it isn't the Queen of Air and showing up at the wrong time," I said, panting and pulling on one of my bathrobes, not remembering that said bathrobe no longer fit me appropriately. Flustered, I took it off again, then donned Murphy's black robe that hung from the hook on the door.

"Apologies, Sir Knight." Mab touched a perfectly sculpted nail to her alabaster chin. "Or, I guess that would be Lady Knight?"

"This is temporary," Murphy said, scrambling to clean himself up. He put my robe on and adjust the bedclothes.

"Tantric magic, I assume, child?" Mab said.

"Unintentional, but yes."

"Well, pardon my intrusion, Lady Knight. I felt the disturbance in the Mantle and thought I'd investigate."

"We were just about to put things right when you interrupted," I said.

She nodded. "Hmmm, is that so?"

"Yes, that's so. So if you can kindly amscray we can get back to it."

She stared at me, confused. "I know approximately one-thousand seven-hundred and eighty-six languages, girl, and in none of them is the word 'amscray.'"

I felt myself blush. That was a strange reaction, and I blamed it on the body. "It means, scram, my Queen."

She nodded. "I suspected it might mean something like that, child."

She'd never called me 'child' before. And given our new height difference, I didn't like it.

"I have another reason for coming here today. Thee can hold off on thy little sexplay for now to attend to me, Lady Knight?"

I grit my teeth at that. "Of course."

"Pull thyself together and visit me in the living room."

"Yes, my Queen."

She dissolved back into the night.

"That was awkward," Murphy said.

"I'll say." I shivered. "I was so close too."

"Well, it sent me over the top. Sorry about that, I feel like a teenager."

I giggled. "We'll get this sorted out after she leaves."

"You do realize it's after 3 am, Dresden."

"Yesssss," I hissed a bit. "But I'm still…you know…frustrated."

He chuckled. "So now you know how I feel."

I rolled my eyes. "What can I wear that's better than this?"

She nodded toward her closet. "There's a pair of running tights, sports-bra and a t-shirt in there."

I put the clothing on, trying not to think about how Murphy's body jiggled, and how sensitive certain areas were.

"How do I look?" he said, holding his arms up. He had on a t-shirt and my sweats.

"Like you should. How about me?"

"As you should," he chuckled. "How's the sports-bra feel?"

"Let's get this over with so you never have to say that again."

"Agreed," he said and followed me out into the living room.

Somehow, Mab had whipped herself up a cup of tea, with accompanying biscuits, honey, lemon slices, and other items decorating a porceline tray.

"Tea?" she said.

I nodded. "Might as well."

She poured us each a cup. Murphy and I sat on the couch, and Mab perched perfectly on the edge of one of our chairs.

I took a sip of tea. It tasted…different with Murphy's tastebuds. Not bad, but needed a bunch more sugar. I dropped in several cubes, and found it much more to my liking.

"So what else can we do for you, my Queen?"

Mab took a perfect bite of a corner of a scone. I wondered how she did that, everytime I ate scones they crumbled like I was a heathen.

"There is a," she paused a moment, and took a sip of tea. "Situation, thee could help me remedy, Lady Knight."

"Okay," I said, taking a sip of tea myself. I think I might end up becoming a tea drinker.

"You are aware, of course, of your former protege?"

"Molly, yes." I set the teacup down, maybe a bit too loudly. "What's happened? Is she okay?"

"Yes, yes. She is fine. However…"

Mab was being evasive. She was never evasive; she usually came in like a thunderstorm, told me exactly what she wanted, and left like a tornado.

I wanted to prompt her, but from long experience, and months of torture at her hands, I knew better than to press her. She would get around to it in her own time.

"At our last occasion to speak, she grew a bit…wrought, with me. And has fled Arctis Tor, and any area of my influence, completely."

For the third time in 12 hours, I felt my heart tumble down into my socks. Or, running tights.

"Where did she go?"

"Did thee not hear what I said, my Kight? The part where I said 'out of my influence?' I suspect she is within Summer's Domain though I shoulds't think she'd be smarter than that."

I sighed. "so Molly ran away. If I know the grasshopper, she had good reason. What did you do to her?"

Mab steepled her fingers under her chin. She had extremely long fingers, alabaster white, with purple nails, so dark they appeared almost black.

"What I did, or didn't do, is no concern of thee, my Knight. I am assigning thee to return the Winter Lady to her proper place at court. Use force, if you have to."

I clenched my jaw. "This isn't the way to get someone to work with you, my Queen. Perhaps if you, oh, I don't know, apologized?"

"It is not within my nature to apologize, my Knight. Thee, more than anyone should know this."

I knew the truth of that very well, indeed.

"Well, I won't haul her to you with force. I can agree to talk to her, though."

"You will do as I say, Knight!" She said, and on the last word, I heard a thunderclap.

I stood up and put as much steel in Murphy's voice as I could. "You and I had an agreement, Queen, that I would perform the duties of Winter Knight, but in my way. I refuse to be your puppet, but I will speak to her on your behalf, that is all I can agree to."

Mab closed her mouth with a click, and her eyes faded to black for a brief moment. I was treading perilous ground here, but a few moments later, they returned to normal.

"Very well. You will speak to her on my behalf, and report back, Knight. I can accept that adjustment to our agreement."

"Thank you."

"You can find your way to summer, I imagine?"

"I still have contact with Sarissa, at times."

Mab nodded. "A pity we lost that one. She was such an efficient tutor for you."

I nodded, remembering. Sarissa helped me after my ill-fated assassination suicide attempt. She was my trainer, healer, and sometime tormenter. I liked her, liked her company, but she had been elevated to be the Summer Lady when Molly had been turned.

"I'll manage," I said.

She stood up. "You know, as much as I like the idea of thee learning the more feminine side of your life, this form does not behoove thee to the summer court. Your Mantle will be ineffective there, my Knight."

"We'll have it worked out by then."

"Perhaps I can assist thee? A snap of my fingers and—"

"We'll do it on our own," Murphy said. "Thanks for the offer."

Mab gave a brief small sigh. "Very well. When can I expect the Winter Lady to return?"

"That's up to her," I said.

"I'll expect her by the new moon, my Knight. And then I'll be…displeased."

I shivered at that. Mab being displeased is what causes hurricanes, tornadoes, death, and destruction.

"Thanks for stopping by," I said in Murphy's best snark voice.

"Fare thee well, Lady Knight, she nodded her head to me. Sir Guardian," she nodded toward Murphy.

"Fare thee well, my Queen," I said. Best to stick to Sidhe formalities when meeting and departing.

With a thud of a quiet thunderclap, she was gone.

Murphy sighed. "Jesus, Harry, that lady is scary."

"I know, right?"

"Sexy, though. Why is it I only now notice it? It's like the moment I saw her, I started to get turned on. How do you ever stand it?"

That did not bode well.

"What?" Murphy said, looking at my face.

"Well, that comment makes me think we should have taken her up on her offer to swap us back."

"And give her unfettered access to our spirits? Thank you, but no."

I nodded. "Let's go back to the bedroom and do it again. It's concerning that you felt attracted to her."

"How do you mean?"

I took her hand, leading her back. "Nothing I want to discuss considering our current state of affairs. Let's just say, the sooner, the better. Tantric magic can be a bit…unpredictable."

He nodded. Then he stooped and lifted me up into his arms.

I squealed, "Hey, what are you doing?"

He chuckled. "I've always wanted to do this, and wondered what it felt like."

I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck, trying to make myself as light as possible. He kissed me as we entered our bedroom, then set me gently on the bed.

Leaning me back, he kissed me hungrily. There was a part of me that was yelling that this wasn't the way, but I shut up that part of me and allowed him to take me.

Afterward, we both fell asleep. I didn't have the ability to figure out where I began, and Murphy ended. We were a jumble of exhausted arms, legs, fingers, and toes.

Sleep claimed me.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Sunlight crept in on silent wings, illuminating the world beyond my eyes. I could smell bacon and coffee, and my stomach rumbled.

"Wakey Wakey, eggs, and bakey." Murphy said, walking into the room with a tray.

I sighed. We were back where we belonged. I sat up in the bed, rubbing my hair.

"Some night, last night, huh?"

"Crazy," she said, placing the tray down. She snatched a bacon slice and munched it thoughtfully.

"You know, bacon theft is punishable by death in some dimensions."

She giggled. "There's more."

We sat and ate then drank some coffee.

"So, Mab," she said after we'd finished.

"Yep."

"And Molly."

I felt my heart tug at that one. "In the land of Summer."

"And Susan."

"Yep," I said.

"So, what's next?"

I got up. "Shower."

She giggled, I mean after that, oaf."

I put my arms around her, my chin resting on her head. I enfolded her in my arms, holding her close.

"I'm glad we're back where we belong."

"Right?" I said. "When I woke up this morning, I half expected to still be in your body."

"Me too. In fact, for a couple of moments, we were. But then something, I don't know, flipped, and I was back here."

I blinked. "Flipped?"

She nodded. "Like a light switch."

"Dammit," I said. "Mab!"

In the next instant, Mab stood at the foot of the bed. "Yes, my Knight?"

"You body swapped us."

She gave a tight smile. She wore a lovely blue flowered dress with a wide-brimmed hat. "Your tantric magic didn't work, my Knight. Your souls needed to be back in their original vessels in order for you to speak to my Winter Lady."

"Of anyone, Molly would know not everything is as it appears."

"Well, obviously, whatever tantric cantrip thee attempted didn't work, so I made things right, my Knight."

I nodded. I wanted to press the issue but now wasn't the time. Plus, testing Mab's patience was never a good thing.

My shoulders slumped. "Thank you, my Queen."

"What?" Murphy said. "Dresden, if she did this without your consent, isn't that a violation of the accords?"

"Well, not of the accords, but she did violate the third law of Magic."

Mab smiled. "Those laws apply to mortals, wizard. As thee well know."

"It was still unwanted, Mab. And you broke your word."

"I did no such thing. I had offered to swap you back, and you refused saying you would accomplish this task yourself. You failed to do that, so I rectified the situation."

I wondered what that meant. Sidhe were incredibly powerful. Having one inside your mind, moving your spirit, access to your memories. It was a profound violation, and one I would not allow to go unanswered…but I couldn't take action right now.

"We will speak of this later," I said.

She blinked. Then gave me a wintery smile. Then she was gone.

I sighed.

"So, what does this mean."

I shook my head. "Without consulting Bob I don't know. Sidhe magic works by different rules."

"I mean, the end result is the same, right?" She said. "I'm me; you're you?"

"Yes, but it was using one mode of magic to reverse another mode of magic."

"So it's like taking a train and going back home by airplane. Why does it matter if the result is the same?"

"The airplane costs more."

"But the result is the same, Dresden."

I nodded. "It appears that way."

"Well, no sense crying over spilt milk. You take a shower, then what's our next steps?"

"Mac's," I said.

She giggled. "We just ate, Dresden."

"I'll have you know Mac's can be used for more than just a restaurant."

She giggled.

"Pizza," I said, snapping my fingers.

"I thought they only served steak?"

"No, I need to put out an offering for the little ones so I can get word to Fix and Sarissa."

"We murdered the one we had last night."

I nodded, kissing her soft. "I'll be back in awhile."

"Don't do anything stupid, Dresden."

I held a hand to my chest. "Moi? Stupid? I'm hurt, Lieutenant."

"Yeah, cry me a river. You check in with me, okay? If I don't hear from you, I'm sending in the munchkin brigade."

After my shower, I made a few phone calls, then picked up a pizza at Little Ceasar's. Afterward, I drove down to our place near the park, set the pizza on top of Murphy's fancy little SUV, and called for the Za-Lord's Guard.

It didn't take long. Toot-toot flitted in with some of his companions a few moments later.

"Everything secure around the lake?"

"Yes, my Lord!" the tiny fairy said, giving me a salute.

"You and your brethren, and sisterren have been staying safe and avoiding large groups of people?"

Toot-toot's eyes became a bit downcast. "We lost one yesterday, my Lord."

I blinked. "Really? I'd only been telling you that as a precaution. COVID can affect fairy folk?"

"Apparently, Lord. She started coughing two days ago and expired last night."

"Who?"

"Dusty, my Lord."

I put a hand over my heart. "Well, if there's anything magical I can do to stop this virus, I will do it."

"Thank you, my Lord." He eyed the pizza. "Will there be anything else?"

"Oh, one other thing. Get word to Fix and Sarissa and let them know I need to see them at Mac's in about an hour, would ya?"

He saluted and spoke to one of the Guard. The tiny fairy then lifted off and sped into the distance, glowing fairy-dust the only thing left in his stead.

"Done! My Lord."

"Thank you, General."

He grinned at that, running a hand over the shiny metal badge on his shoulder I'd made for him. "Anything else?"

"No, you guys enjoy. But be careful out there, and keep your distance."

"Aye, my Lord!" they all said, saluting me.

I saluted solemnly in return, then got into Murphy's car and drove off.

I was wearing the magical suppression collar so I could drive her fancy ride. I found my way to the Carpenter's house and knocked on the door.

Mouse about bowled me over as Charity opened the door. My temple guard dog jumped up and down, wanting to be petted.

"Hello there, boy," I said. "How are things?"

He huffed at me, and gave me a doggy grin.

I looked up at Charity. "How are things?"

She shrugged. "Kids driving me crazy. Michael's out back, re-planking the deck."

"Again?"

"Third time this year. He likes to keep his hands busy."

I nodded. "I…have something to discuss with you two."

She looked at me. "Does it involve my husband joining you on some ridiculous quest for Gold inside the vault of some Olympian nightmare?"

"No…nothing like that." I chuckled. "Good times."

"Yeah," she said in a low voice. "Good times. Look, Harry, I love you like a brother, but every time you "need to talk;' my husband gets dragged into—"

"Susan's alive."

She looked at me, eyes wide. "Let me go get Michael."

I entered the living room, and Maggie came running out and leaped into my lap. I caught the little female missile and hugged her tightly.

"How are you, Maggie?"

"Good! Uncle Michael is hammering again."

"He's a good hammerer."

"I get to hold his tools and hand them to him. Sometimes he even lets me hammer."

I smiled, running my hand through her dark hair. She looked so much like a small Susan; it was scary.

"Do I have to come live with you now?"

She had a hard time pronouncing the letter L. Live became 'Wive.'

"No, honey. It's best that you stay here for now. This is probably the safest place on the planet."

She nodded, then snuggled into my chest. I stroked her hair, holding her very tight.

Michael came in, sweaty and hot. He looked good with his tight t-shirt and jeans, and when did I start noticing that? I shook my head. The recent experience with Murphy must still be acting on me. I gritted my teeth and stared at his wife, the gorgeous blonde, as she served us drinks.

"So," Michael said, sitting down and taking a tumbler of iced-tea from his wife. "What's this all about now, Harry?"

I sighed and set Maggie on the floor. "You go play."

"I want to stay wif you."

That tugged on my heart more than you know. "I'll take you to the park tomorrow, okay?"

"Promise?"

"Promise."

She smiled, and gave me a big hug again, then went running after. Mouse looked up at me.

"I know. I'll take you to the park too."

The dog chuffed, then went dashing after Maggie.

"They both miss you, Harry."

"I know. And I'm retired, for sure. But I want to give a little time to Murphy before we become a full family again. Plus, this is like magical Fort Knox here, with the guardian angels."

Michael chuckled. "So tell us about Susan."

"Apparently, there was an 'irregularity regarding her death and she was sent back in a different body."

"Sounds familiar," Michael said. Man, his voice was deep. I didn't remember it being that deep, it gave me chills for some reason today, and I found myself wanting to touch my hair for some reason.

"Anyway, she has to 'atone for her past transgressions.' I'm not sure, but I figured one of them was probably Maggie, and maybe you."

"The Lord works in mysterious ways," Michael said, making the sign of the cross.

"So I thought I could bring her by, and she could…well, do what she needs to do."

Michael looked to Charity, who looked right back to Michael.

"Are you sure that's best, Harry?"

I shrugged. "Who knows. You have a better handle on the Big Guy in the Sky, then I do."

Michael put his fist under his chin and fell silent a moment. I couldn't help but notice his biceps and the muscle in his jaw working. When did he get so chiseled, and when would I stop noticing things like Michael being chiseled?

"Mab," I whispered. "I'm going to get you."

Michael nodded. "Yes, I think it's appropriate. I'm not sure we should tell Maggie exactly who she is; however until we know what the fallout of this will be. There's no sense in getting her hopes up."

"I agree," I said.

"Thank you for giving us a heads up, Harry. The old 'you' would have just shown up here and not thought about the consequences."

"Harry's evolving," Charity said, giving me a grin.

"Meh," I said. "I thought it would be fair, considering the circumstances."

"When will you bring her by?" Michael said.

I shrugged. "I'll give you a call," I said, holding up a cellphone.

"Wow, and it's still functional?"

"I know, right? Butters gave me a magic dampening collar thingie so I can use technology tools."

Michael smiled. "Will wonders never cease? I knew our newest Knight of the Cross was brilliant."

I got up from the chair and went to the door. "Let Maggie know I'll be back later, would you?"

"Of course, Harry."

I smiled and waved. "Nice seeing you both."

"Always welcome, Harry," Michael said in that low voice that gave me shivers.

I went out to the car, got in, and took a long drink of water from a water bottle. I also poured some of the water over my head. Something was definitely wrong with me.

Sure, I'd known Michael was handsome, but it was in an offhand, good looking guy, kinda way. This reaction was much different. I'd stared right at Charity like I normally did and felt nothing, other than I wondered where she got the pants she'd been wearing. Michael though…I shivered and poured some water over my head again. That was just not right.

My sexuality had changed. This was not normal, or wanted.

I put the car in gear and pointed it back into town.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Fix and Sarissa waited for me at Mac's pub.

McAnally's, or Mac's was Accorded Neutral Territory. Meaning, magical beings from all sides could sit, imbibe and eat, and not bring any outside conflicts into the pub. Mac stood at his grill, shining glasses with his apron.

He saw me enter, and immediately threw a steak on the grill. I smiled. A man who knows what I want.

"Hi, Harry!" Sarissa said, holding out her arms for an embrace. She still looked too young to drink legally, with high cheekbones, olive skin, and exotic green-gold almond-shaped eyes.

"Hey, you two," I said.

Fix held out his hand. I shook it. "Been awhile," he said.

"Yeah." He looked quite a bit different from the 17-year old I first met so many years ago. The Mantle suited him well.

Harry brought over a steak sandwich and some ale in a brown bottle. "Thank you, Master Beeromancer!" I said, snatching up the bottle and taking a long pull.

Mac grunted and walked away.

"So how've you been, Harry?" Sarissa said. "Staying healthy, I hope."

"COVID got nothin' on me," I said. "Quiet; lately, everyone has been behaving for the most part. Murphy and I got a little place over in Lakeside."

"Oooh, nice!" Fix said. "You're getting all fancy, Dresden."

"Yeah, well…" I took a bite of my sandwich. "My last gig paid pretty well."

"So, what can we do you for?" Sarissa said, smiling.

I finished chewing and wiped my mouth with a napkin. "Molly."

Sarissa's face fell. "Ah, I was afraid of this."

"So you do know where she is?"

She nodded. Fix had a grim face.

"And?"

"And, Harry…she's fine."

"I need to see her."

"No can do, Amigo," Fix said. "She doesn't want to see anyone right now."

"Why has she left the Winter Court?"

Sarissa sighed. "Look, Harry, no offense, but this is above your paygrade."

That made me angry. "Really? Look, no offense, but the freakin' Queen of Air and Darkness sent me to find her. I'm the official Knight of the Winter Court. The Summer Lady and the Summer Knight are telling the Winter Knight that they are harboring a person of interest, and you think it's above my paygrade? I don't want to throw down with you two, but if I need to…"

"Look, Harry." Fix said, holding up his hands. "We'll go back and talk to her, okay? Maybe, if it's you, and maybe if you can…I don't know, promise to actually listen to her before acting, she might agree. She knows you, though, and knows what kind of pressure you are under with the Mantle. She's afraid you're going to haul her back, kicking and screaming, and she doesn't want that."

"All I told her was that I'd talk to her. I didn't promise to bring her back. If you can convey that to her, I'd appreciate it."

"Okay," They visibly relaxed.

I finished up my sandwich. "So, can we go see her now?"

They both blinked. "Umm.."

"Look, like I said, I won't take any action regardless of the outcome. Mab just wants me to talk to her, that's all. I'm not going to take her; I won't throw down. If you want, I'll even keep this nifty collar on that keeps my magic in check."

"I wondered what that was." Fix touched it.

"We wanted to be able to watch Netflix without me scrambling the digital brains of everything I touched."

Sarissa giggled. "And you came to a meeting with us, Harry? That's quite a risk, even for you."

"Eh, I figured if you wanted me dead, you wouldn't use Mac's place to do it."

Fix nodded. "True."

"So can you please take me to the Grasshopper? This is bothering me, and I kind of have a lot of balls up in the air lately."

Fix looked at Sarissa, who nodded. "Alright. But—"

"But?"

Fix sighed. "You, ah, might want to prepare yourself, Harry."

"For what?"

Sarissa's eyes watered suddenly. "She's changed."

For me to go through the Ways takes my staff, a ton of knowledge, and a lot of power. I can't just open it up without some magical device assisting me and focusing and amplifying my power.

Sarissa snapped her fingers. The way opened up behind Mac's pub.

We stepped into a green, lush garden full of sunflowers. VInes hung from immense trees that created a canopy overhead. It was warm but not too warm. Sunny, but not too bright. Verdant acres of grass stretched for miles around.

A two-seater vehicle sat next to the archway we had just entered. It looked like an overgrown motorcycle with as ski in the front and rugged, knobby tires in the back.

"Um," Fix said. "How's Harry going to—"

Sarissa pulled something out of the back, and it snapped into a scooter-like device with a large rear wheel and a front ski. "Harry, you'll need to take this. Can you ride a scooter?"

"When I was eleven," I said, staring at the contraption.

Sarissa giggled. "You'll get the hang of it. Hop on, and follow us. I won't go too fast…at first."

I tentatively for onto the scooter and pressed the red button. Fairy dust plumed behind me, and I found if I twisted the right handlebar, it would go faster, and the small break on the left handle made me slow down. With a few minutes of practice, we were speeding along the grass, the front ski laying the stalks down gently as the rear wheels provided locomotion.

We picked up speed as the grass stretched out into what looked like an ocean of greenery. I don't know how they were able to make any sense of direction. They went straight for about a half an hour, then made a hard right in the middle of the grass, and we sped off in the new direction. Far in the distance, I could see a few individual hills with archways on top. Something about all that green made me happy, and I felt the exhilaration as we picked up speed.

After a few more changes in direction, we came to another arch seemingly random. Sarissa and fix stopped, and I pulled up alongside.

"That was fun!" I said, grinning widely.

"I know, right?" Sarissa said. "It took me a while to figure out the coordinates. They call this the Sargrasso Sea.

"Hah." I said.

We stepped through the portal into a much different environment. Wind tore through the open front of my Duster, and I quickly did up the buttons and hiked up the collar. Without the Winter Mantle, it was cold.

"Jesus, a little warning, would have been nice," I said, my teeth already chattering.

"Ugh, I forgot your Mantle is restricted," Sarissa said. She enveloped me in a cocoon of warmth that also kept the worst of the wind from my body. The archway behind me led to a stair that descended far down below.

We walked down the stairway and out onto a frozen plain. Huge boulders of ice dotted the landscape as we trudged through the drifting snow. Fix looked like he was feeling it a bit more, as something came into view.

A castle stood in the distance with spindly bridges, spans, and walls. Even from this distance and without my magic, I could tell they were made of ice. Lovely, blue, stark, the castle sprang up from the frozen plain.

We approached a drawbridge and walked across. It closed behind us, with an immense whump that made my ears plug up. I yawned, trying to get them to open again.

Several servants greeted us; all were elves with white hair, stark blue eyes, and long pointed ears. Smaller than humans, none of them appeared more than five feet tall. They greeted us, and one of them led us through the castle filled with tapestries showing fae folk of all kinds battling demons, or another fae, or humans. One even showed them facing off against Dinosaurs.

We were led to an antechamber, where the servant told us we could take off our jackets. A warm fire flickered in a white fireplace, and what looked like polar bear pelts were scattered around the floor.

"Welcome to Arctis Meridi," the servant said. "The Queen will attend you shortly."

"Thank you, Ivan," Sarissa said.

"Is there anything you require? Food? A beverage?"

"We just had lunch, but thank you."

I took the opportunity to walk around the room and marvelled at the tapestries and decorations. Fire flickered from intricate wall sconces carefully scattered around the room, creating crystalline illumination from the walls of ice surrounding us.

"This place rivals Artctis Tor," I said, as another person entered the room.

She wore a flowing robe of ermine that trailed behind and rose around her swanlike neck in a stiff collar. She had the same overall appearance as the other elves of the castle, with stark alabaster skin, and sky-blue eyes. Tall and rail-thin her spindly fingers were tipped in long cerulean nails. Her ears stood out long and pointed, rising above the level of her head.

Her hair was the same white as the other sidhe, but had been coiled into a confection of curls and whorls above her head where an intricate white crown perched precariously.

She regarded me with ice blue eyes drawn up into severe slits. Her azure lips smiled softly, setting off the angular cheekbones elves all shared.

"Greetings, Sir Knight," she said, in a softly melodious voice.

I don't know if it was something about her eyes or the way she held her head, but the reality of who I was facing, suddenly crashed through me.

"Molly?" I choked out.

She briefly closed extended alabaster lashes set off by white pencil-thin brows, and bowed her head slightly.

"Thank you, Lady Summer, and Summer Knight," she said in that same, soft, melodious voice. "I can take it from here. Thou may depart."

"You'll be okay, Harry?" Sarissa said.

My eyes were still staring at 'Molly.' "Uh, yah."

"I shall return our Knight to whence he originated. Fare thee well, my friends."

"Bye-bye, my Lady," Sarissa said, and they both walked out.

Molly took my hand in her far more petite one. "Come, Sir Knight. We have much to discuss."

"I'll say," I said, and allowed her to lead me away.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

She led me into a much more private room with a small settee and chairs carefully arranged by a fire. All the furniture was more elf-sized, as I glanced around the room.

Molly took off her robe, then set her crown on a cabinet near opposite the fire.

She turned and approached me. "I hesitated to allow thee to see me in this fashion, Sir Knight. I can see it disturbs thee greatly."

I swallowed. "Just a bit of a shock, grasshopper."

She gave a small perfect smile at that as she drew nearer. The top of her perfect hairdo barely cleared my chin now. Molly had always been tall, nearly six feet, yet now she was lucky if she stood five foot even.

"Does thou still givest embraces, my Knight?"

She opened her arms.

"Oh! Yes, absolutely." I enfolded her small body gently, worried that I might break her. She smelled exotic, but she was warm and just…Molly.

We sat on the small settee. I took up most of the space since it was built for much smaller people, and Molly squeezed in next to me. I still couldn't take my eyes off her.

"I know I appear greatly changed, Knight. Thou can'st put thy tongue back in thy mouth."

I closed my mouth with a click. "Right, sorry. It's just. Wow. You look…so is this a glamour, Molly?"

She shook her head; her elfin features falling. "Sadly, nay. T'is the reason for my falling out with the Winter Queen. She wrought this upon me, and I fear I reacted poorly."

"You can drop the 'thee and thou' routine, Molly. It's me, Harry."

Her perfect head dropped a bit, staring at the floor. "I cannot, Sir Knight. Part of the geas. And I no longer answer to that name."

"Uh, then what name do you answer to?"

She sighed. "I am Maaleshiira. Queen of Arctis Meridi."

I nodded. "Can I still call you Molly?"

"It would'st be best, Knight, to refer to me properly. The geas creates an instability within me each time I hear that name. With each reference to my old life, more of my memories fade. If thou truly wishes to assist me, though will refer to my thusly."

I nodded. "Okay."

She leaned against me, laying her head on my shoulder. I put my arm around her, again worried I might break her somehow.

"My heart aches for thee, Knight. I wish my visage did not repel thee so."

"Oh, Mo…Maaleshiira, it doesn't repel me. In fact, you are quite lovely, beautiful even. Just a different level of beauty than before is all, and I was taken aback."

She looked into my eyes. "Truly? You do not find me abhorrent?"

I tipped her angular chin up and caressed her delicate cheek, feeling the angular cheekbones. "Truly, Lady."

"This new gladdens my heart, oh Knight. I am happy thou are't here, finally. I so desired to send word to thee, find thee, yet stayed my hand because I feared thee would find me ugly."

Something stirred within me. Something I didn't think could stir since the body swap with Murphy. I held her hand, in mine, then unfolded it, staring down to see.

So small and delicate within my much larger hand. Even with her long nails, my fingers were longer than hers. Spindly, with extended forefingers, they were definitely no longer human.

"How does it feel, Maal?"

She shrugged. "In some ways, wonderous beyond words. I can feel the gale outside, the ice beneath us, and stretching far to the horizon. I can craft the ice in any fashion I desire, creating wondrous works of art. It's taken me weeks to fashion this castle, thou hast come to."

"That's good, then."

"In other ways…not so fortuitous, Knight. As I have said, I cannot break from this mode of speech, which the previous 'me' would have found stilted beyond words. Worse, I now think in the language of the sidhe, and it takes me…time…to fashion even these words. Every time I look into the mirror, I see something alien, strange, yet becoming more and more familiar and real than the past ever was."

"That's…disturbing."

"T'is why I had a falling out with the Queen. She hast wrought a change in me so deeply I have forgotten who I once was. Dost thou know I cannot remember thine name?"

"Harry," I said.

"Thou sayest it, but the word emanating from thy lips is so alien I can'st remember, Knight."

I nodded, gathering her into my arms again. Cerulean tears leaked from angled lids as she cried softly.

"The most frightening thing, Knight…" she shook her head, causing the earrings in her lobes to tinkle.

"What, Maal?"

"I forget mine own family. The face of mine father, mother, siblings."

"We can remedy that. We can go visit them."

She looked up at me. "Do thou think they should find me abhorrent?"

"Maal, you know better than that. They love, Cherish and adore you. It doesn't matter if you've been turned into an…elf. They will always love you."

She nodded, tears streaming down her face.

I held her to me, feeling her small body next to mine. I felt fiercely protective of this small creature, my former apprentice and friend. I would move mountains to keep her safe and secure.

"What is this around thy neck, Knight?"

"Oh, Butters made it. It restrains my magic and the mantle. We mainly did it to watch Netflix, but I thought it would be good to come here so you-know-who wouldn't be notified."

"That was thoughtful, night."

I smiled, holding her. It felt good to be with Molly again, no matter how she appeared. She was still the spunky, funky kid I'd grown to know and love, no matter what the container might be.

"How have thou been, Knight?"

I sighed. "Oh, the usual. You've heard about the virus currently raging across America?"

"Yes, thou not lately."

"Not much to tell other than we are all sheltering in our homes and trying not to go out to buy time for the virologists making up a vaccine."

"Sounds…lovely?"

"It is lovely, actually. Aside from people dying and all."

She nodded.

"And Susan appeared yesterday."

Maal gasped at that, slitted eyes widening slightly. "She lives?"

"She's stuck in the body of a 17-year-old. She has to 'atone for her sins.'"

"Oh, the poor creature."

"Yeah. She's not real happy about it. You have any idea how she could atone?"

"Dids't she wrong others in her life?"

"A few. She fought in South America against the Red Court, if you remember. She was also a reporter, so who knows how many sins of the past are haunting her future."

"Perhaps a noble gesture on behalf of all her victims?"

I blinked. "You think?"

"I do not know for certain, Knight, but perhaps that might even the scales."

"Couldn't hurt, I spose."

"And thyself? I sense some distress within thou."

"Yeah…long story."

"I have been told I shall exist for millennia, Knight."

"Murphy and I accidentally tripped the light trantastic the other night. We got soul mixed, and now my sexuality appears to have changed."

She blinked. "Thou finds men attractive now?"

"With one exception," I said, hugging her.

She giggled. "Thou does find my visage pleasing then."

"Indeed."

"Thou knows we could steal away for a few hours and snuggle under mine furs..."

"I would enjoy that," I said, cupping her chin. "I'm committed to Murphy, however."

She nodded. "I expected that, Sir Knight. Thou has't always been devoted. While I've been cherished, though has't never shown me thy ardor."

"Uh, yeah."

She giggled. "Fret not, Knight. Seeing thee does make me want to leap thy bones, but I shall refrain for now."

"I think I might break you, considering."

She smiled, leaning in close. "I am magnificently flexible, Knight. I shan't break."

I swallowed. It would be very easy to fall into those pools of ice. Maeve, the former Winter Lady was a sex-addicted crazed person who bedded anyone that came near. I knew the Winter Mantle gave Molly…needs as it did with me. It would be very easy to five into those feelings.

"Your father would kill me. As would the Queen."

She sniffed, turning her head. "Pity."

"Speaking of your father, I need to find Susan. I was going to take her to see Maggie."

Maal nodded, her eyes tearing up again.

"What's wrong?"

"Thou leaves me, and it breaks mine heart."

"Aww, my Lady." I said, pulling her to me. "Don't be like that."

"You cannot know how lonely it is here, Knight. I ache to see mine old family."

"Why can't you?"

She paused a moment. "The Queen would feel mine presence."

I nodded. "But you'd be able to see your family. They miss you terribly, Lady Maal."

She stood. "I suppose it's time to go back home. Both mine former and new home. The Queen will be placated."

"True."

"Can we visit them now? I fear I will not be allowed once I return to the Winter Court."

"Of course," I said, standing and taking her small hand. "They would be so happy to see you and know you are okay."

She sniffed, smiling. "Truly?"

"Truly."

I helped her into her cape. "Would thou speak on my behalf and let them know not to call me by my old name? It…damages, my memories."

"Of course."

She giggled, a tinkling sound of snow falling on ice. "You make me so happy, Knight. Thou fills my heart with gladness."

I tugged the cape around her shoulders, letting flow outwards. It was strange to bend over so far, almost like dressing a toy.

"You always fill my heart too, Lady Maal."

"Truly?" she said, squeezing my hand.

I nodded. "Truly."

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

We stepped through the portal and onto the lawn of the Carpenter House.

"Are you going to wear a veil?"

Sighing, the elf shook her head. "I cannot. The Queen has me in a geas."

"Want me to try?"

She giggled. "It will be okay, Knight."

I could hear some kind of ruckus coming from the side-yard. It was nearly dark, and from out of the shadows, a hulking beast shambled out, shaking leaves from his shaggy coat.

"Mouse!" I said, kneeling, as the dog huffed and ran toward me. Maggie came behind him, holding a plastic gun.

"Hey! You stole my horse! Unhand, it Horse-Rustler!" Maggie said, pointing the gun at me.

"Not by the hair of your chinny chin chin," I said, pretending to move Mouse around me. The dog was so large and robust, it wasn't easy to get him to move.

She 'shot' me with her plastic pistol, saying "pew pew pew!" Then she ran up with her arms open. I scooped her up.

"Hi, Daddy," Maggie said.

"Hey, weasel-monkey. You and Mouse playing cowgirl?"

"Yeah. Who's the pretty lady?" she pointed at Maal.

"That's a surprise. Want to take us inside?"

"Yep, partner!" she said, getting down and taking my hand. She led us onto the porch and into the house.

"Uncle Michael, my Daddy is back!"

Charity came in from the kitchen. "Is this Susan?" she said, wiping her hands on an apron.

"Um, no. Let's wait for Michael, and I'll make introductions."

"Are you staying for dinner?"

I glanced at Maal. She inclined her head regally, once.

"Sure, we'd love to."

"Great! I'll set out two plates." She went back into the kitchen, and I heard rustling.

"You okay?" I said softly.

She nodded, closing her elfin eyes. "Yes."

Michael walked in a few moments later. "Harry! Good to see you back. Um…is this, Susan?"

"No, I haven't been to see Susan just yet. Charity can you come in here a moment?"

Charity entered the room, wiping off her hands. "Dinner is almost ready. Will Susan be coming too?"

"No."

Charity nodded.

"I'd like to introduce you to Lady Maalshiira, Winter Lady of the Winter Court of the Sidhe. You've known that I am the Winter Knight, under Queen Mab…"

They both nodded.

"Well, there are three Queens of the Winter Court. Mother Winter, The Winter Queen, and the Winter Lady. What we haven't told you was…as a result of things that happened two years ago, your daughter became the Winter Lady. She hid this from you for reasons we don't want to go into right now, but needless to say; she is now the Winter Lady both in form and in essence."

"Wait…then, who is this?"

"May I present, Lady Maalshiira. Your daughter."

Charity gasped and fell into a chair. Michael also looked thunderstruck. "By all that is Holy under Christ. Molly, is that you?"

Maal gave a pained expression and looked at me in panic. "Greetings, Parents."

"Ah, we can't call her by that name anymore, Michael. She's under a geas, and if we use her old name, it causes her pain, and it erases a bit more of her.

"What are you talking about Harry, I can't say my own daughter's name?"

"Hi, Pretty Lady. Want to come play with me?" Maggie said, reaching for her hand.

Maal took it. "Perhaps after supper, little one."

"Is it really you?" Michael said, approaching her.

"Tis me," she shrugged her shoulders.

Michael gathered his daughter in his arms, smiling as Charity put her arms around them both.

After the long greeting session, Charity suddenly exclaimed: "My pasta!" and ran back into the kitchen.

Amanda walked into the house behind us.

"Amanda!" Michael said. "This is your sister."

Maal looked up at her, now taller, sibling. "Greetings, Jawa."

Amanda frowned, hugging the Lady. "What happened to you?"

"Let's go in to the dinner table, and we can talk all about it," Michael said.

I escorted Maal to the table, then held out her chair. She glanced at it, then looked up at me. I realized the chair was too tall for her.

"Umm, do you guys have a box or something she can step on?"

"Oh!" Charity ran and got a cookie tin. She handed it to me, and I set it down. Primly, Lady Maal stepped on the tin, then sat carefully in the chair.

"Thank you, Sir Knight." She arranged her skirts as I took the chair to the right of her.

"So, things have changed," Michael said after he had led us in a blessing.

"The Winter Queen as wrought me thusly," Maal said. "I'm under a geas and can not change my method of speech. It causes pain to speak in any other manner."

Charity shook her head, cutting her pasta. I helped Maggie cut hers, then set it in front of her. She dug in.

Molly carefully ate her meal, the picture of nobility and grace, taking tiny bites.

"And what does being the Lady of Winter entail?" Michael said.

Lady Maal ate a few more bites. "We protect the multiverse from extra-dimensional creatures known as the…" she looked to me.

"The Outsiders," I said. "Monsters from beyond the Universe."

"That sounds terrifying!" Charity said.

Maal shrugged her shoulders. "It is an endless battle."

"And they have you fighting this, why?"

"T'is our duty as the Winter Court."

"Mab has been fighting them for eons," I said.

"And now, my daughter, Mal, will be doing the same thing?"

I nodded. "Which is why I'm assigned to protect her."

"Oh, well, that makes me feel better," Charity said in a scathing tone.

I sighed. I could see Charity was working herself into a real fury.

"And there's nothing that can be done to…bring her back?"

"Reverse this?" I said. "No, she's basically immortal now. A Sidhe queen. Even were I to try, it would cause more pain than anything."

"How are…" Maal looked at me.

"The boys?"

She nodded.

"You can't remember the name of your own brothers, Maal?" Charity said.

"It's the geas, Charity. Give her a break."

"Your brothers are fine." Michael paused.

"Daniel is in Afganistan," Amanda said. "Matthew is in the Marines."

"And Harry here," I said, pointing to the other young man at the table. "Is currently a sophomore in high school."

Maal grinned. "I am so proud of thee, Brother."

"I'm going to Cosmetology school this summer," Alicia said. She had grown into a lovely young woman, very reminiscent of Molly. "By the way, are you wearing any makeup? Your lashes and complexion are to die for."

Maal blushed. "Nay, my days of cosmetics are long past."

Hope spoked up. "Are you and Harry going to get married?"

Maal's blush deepened. "The Winter Lady must not taketh a mate," Maal said. "Until I become Queen."

Everyone talked long into the evening, with Charity calming down. Afterward, I read a story to Maggie, with Maal sitting next to me on her tiny bed and paying as rapt attention as my daughter. We both kissed her good night and went back downstairs.

"The time comes to depart," Maal said, in a soft voice.

"When will we see you again?" Charity asked, after giving her daughter a gentle hug. We all appeared to be afraid of breaking the new elf.

"I do not know, Mother. I must attend the Queen now, sadly, and mayhap be punished for my transgression."

Charity frowned. "What transgression?"

"She's been hiding from the Queen because she did this to her."

"Well, you can always just stay home, Molly."

I heard a thunderclap, and Maal gave a small scream. She fell to the ground, moaning, holding her head. " Blesmi mi miplables gres DD somi?"

"Maal?" I said, taking her hand. "Are you okay?"

"DD somi fleem."

"Lady Maal, nod if you can understand my words."

Confused, she stared at me, shaking her head. "Blesmi miDir anch sofleem?"

"I think you broke her."

"What do you mean, I broke her? She was broken when she came here."

"I told you not to use her name. It causes her pain. Obviously, now, she speaks a different language and can't understand us. Geas are weird like that when you try to go against their dictates.

"I'm sorry, Molly." Charity gathered the elven girl into her arms. "I hope to see you soon."

"Tov gresbles anch, Gresanchtov."

"I'll get it sorted. Don't worry."

I held her hand as we walked out the gate. Mab stood a few yards off, waiting expectantly.

"You're responsible for the language loss?" I said.

"The child needs to learn her place in my court and at my side, Knight."

"Haven't you done enough?"

Maal looked up at me, visibly confused by the interaction. I held up a hand; I got this, don't worry."

"What I do with my representatives is mine own business, Knight. Remember thy place."

Anger; hot and roiling and fast slid up my spine. I hated her condescending tone, hated her mightier than thou attitude, and most of all, I missed my friend, the lovely young girl that had been replaced by this exquisitely petite, angular, intricately crafted being beside me. This was the girl who had learned how to cast a veil as I'd never seen before. This was the girl who helped me rescue my daughter from the clutches of the Red Court by creating an illusion so complex and vast they crapped their pants and ran. This was the girl who carried out my own death plan, arranging my murder so I could be free from pain. This was the girl who had stood by my side through it all, been cast as the winter Lady because of my actions, not her own. This was the girl who saved my life when the spirit of intellect had been crushing my own skull with her birth throes. This was the girl, this was the girl.

"This was the girl!" I said, panting in fury, my staff suddenly alight with power, my shield activated, my blasting rod beginning to smoke.

"Harry?" a deep voice came from behind me. Michael's voice, Molly's Father's voice. "Is everything okay?" I could hear the tone of his voice, indicating he was ready to grab Amorachius and wield it once again if his daughter was in danger.

Mab, able to exist in several states at once, both physical and metaphysical, had apparently witnessed my torment as she crossed that last boundary.

I didn't say anything to Michael. I felt, rather than saw the Sword drawn from its sheath as Michael, former Knight of the Cross, stepped up to my side. He didn't deserve this, didn't deserve a throw-down with Mab right now.

"What's going on?" Another voice sounded behind me, Charity's voice this time and this time I heard the metal on metal shwing as she drew Fidilachious. A Sword she hadn't been granted and should not have been wielding, but with her daughter's fate on the line, she finally stood side by side with her husband. Both swords shimmered and glowed with the power of the Light.

As if on cue from seeing her parents wielding both swords, Molly's fingers began tracing intricate patterns, her aura glowing a deep blue, a hum filling the air as the four of us stood facing Mab.

Maybe this was the moment. The moment I could shed myself of the burden of the Mantle, peel Molly away from her grasp, and all of us live as humans should live.

"I don't understand, Sir Knight. What have I done to offend thee?"

"Let. Her. Go." I said.

"Don't be ridiculous. You know I can't do that."

"Mab?" I said, leveling my blasting rod. "You might be able to turn me into a cinder cone, but while you're doing that, Michael, Knight of the Cross, will be striking you down. And maybe you might be able to even deal with him, Molly and Charity will strike you down. Do you really think you can take all of us?"

She shook her head, her eyes fading to black. "You have no idea of my power, Knight."

"Oh?" I said. "I know we've crossed the line into Spring already. We aren't even governed by your Court right now but Summer! Sarissa and Titania, I summon thee."

A wind struck up from the east. It smelled like summer rain, cut grass, open water, and springtime flowers. Twin whirlwinds appeared as Sarissa the Summer Lady, and Titania, the Queen of Summer, appeared. Fix stepped up behind us as well, his southern drawl sounding in the darkness. "I got your back, Harry."

Mab shook her head. "Knight, you're causing a rift. You do see that, don't you?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Kinda what I do."

"I can't return her to humanity, Knight. I can give her the language back, will that do?"

"It's a start."

She snapped her fingers. "There."

"Molly, can you understand me?"

"Aye, Knight." She said. "What has befallen us?"

"We are taking a stand to force her to give you back. Do you stand with us?"

Molly sighed. She walked over to me, taking my hand.

"As much as I have transformed, Knight, I do see the heart of the issue before the Queen. Human bodies were not meant to fight the Outsiders, only bodies crafted of Sidhe might stand a chance against the ancient Enemy. They grow in number each day and creating a conflict with the Queen, now more than ever, could create an instability in the defense we would never recover from. My heart grows by bounds knowing thee stands with me against what has been wrought; and yes I was greatly saddened by the transformation; however, in the months that I've been like this my soul has also shifted, and I no longer think, act or feel as I once did and thee can now bear witness. My fear had always been thee find me an abhorrent creature since I know thine longstanding resistance to beings of Winter, rightly so since you've been so mistreated. Now that I know thee finds me comely in appearance and spirit, I can rest assured my duties as an elf-queen, Winter Lady, and as your friend will not be forgotten or cast aside."

She took my hand, looking up into my eyes.

"It is time I accept my new station by the Winter Queen and stop acting the insufferable child and aid in the defense of all that stands dear in the greatest fight reality has ever known."

I nodded, tears biting my eyes.

"You won't punish her." I glared at Mab.

Titania stepped forward. "My sister understands the depth of your resolve, Knight. Stay thy arms, comforted to know thy will has been acknowledged by her perhaps by the simple fact Mab has allowed you to continue to draw breath."

In my mind, words appeared. Knight, thou knowest of the creature you call Toot-toot, the sprite? The words carried the 'voice' of Molly somehow, and I knew she was communicating with me.

Yes, how are you doing this?

Fairy Queen.

I silently chuckled. Yes, I remember Toot.

In the balance of power, you are as but he standing against a creature as immense as yourself when confronting Mab. The sole other being of power rests in the body of Titania. To cast these two against each other could destroy not only this world but many. I adore thee for thy attempted rescue, but she would swat thee and my former parents as a fly is swatted by a paper of news.

Ah.

Thank you, Knight, for attempting to rescue me. I accept my position now at her side, and thee can rest comfortably that I will no longer be punished at the hands of the Queen. I adore thee more than thee cans't know, and your love has given me such strength.

I do love you, Maalshiira.

As I love thee, Knight.

She squeezed my hand then, blinking cerulean tears, then turned to Mab, nodding.

You're positive about this?

A few moments went by.

I am.

Well, if you ever change your mind, you know where to find me.

I do.

I have a few other tricks up my sleeve I wasn't revealing, even to you. I think I may be more powerful than even you might know.

She turned her head then, that perfect face with the slitted eyes and angular cheeks split with smile, and then a wink of alabaster lashes.

Thank thee, Knight.

You're welcome, Lady.

Mab exhaled. "You understand the situation now, Knight?"

"Yes, Queen."

"Then, we shall depart. Thank thee for returning the Winter Lady. I shall consider the fact I haven't turned you into a smoking ruin as thy boon. Does thee understand me?"

"Yes."

"Knights of the Cross, thy may stay thy blades. This conflict is ended. I promise to hold thy daughter safe and teach her everything she needs to know. Restest thou knowing she is assisting in the greatest of conflicts known to Creation.

"That's supposed to make us feel better?" Charity said.

Titania put a hand on her shoulder. "She is in good hands."

Charity looked into Titania's eyes and relaxed. "Okay."

"We leave," Mab said, looking at me. "Fare thee well, Knight."

"You too, Queen."

Michael sheathed Amorachius, and Charity lowered Fidilachius.

Silent thunder echoed as Mab and Maal left.

Titania smiled. "Thou should come to visit soon, Knight."

"Thank you for attending, Queen of Summer."

"Thou has assisted the Summer Lady and I in the past. T'was the least we could do."

I exhaled, nodding. "That was close."

Sarissa gave me a kiss on the cheek, then she, Titania, and Fix vanished in a cyclone of summer.

"You are going to tell us what happened, Harry?" Michael said.

"Yeah, let's go back inside."

Charity and Michael held hands as they walked back into their house.

I stood awhile, staring at the last place I'd seen her.

I do love thee, Maal.

As I love thee, Knight. Came the reply.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

After a fitful night of almost sleeping with visions of icegirls dancing in my head, I drove to Butters' and Andi's apartment. Butters' lab looked nothing like my own, but it was nice to be able to walk inside his technoprotected home and not break anything for once.

"I see the collar is working well."

I pulled at it. "Yeah, too well."

Butters frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, nothing. I need to talk to Bob."

"Sure, Harry, come on in."

Andi met us in the hallway. "Harry! How are you and Karrin doing?"

"Very well," I said, touching my mask. "I'm being careful, I promise."

She smiled. "Thank you. Can't be too careful these days. We up for later tonight?"

I frowned. "I'll have to see. There's been a few, wrinkles that might intrude on our game night." We'd been playing D&D over skype every other night. Karrin actually got in on the fun, playing a very chaotic evil mercenary. It was fun, and distracting, and the perfect thing for our little group to pass the time while we were sealed away from each other.

We descended the stairs into the basement. Butters was a medical examiner who worked for the county. Since he was considered "essential personnel" he worked almost every night. "We sure do miss you, pal."

"I miss it too. How'd you get past the Oracle of Eronicus?"

I wiggled my fingers. "Wizard."

He chuckled. Unlike everyone else, I played in D&D what I was in real life. A Wizard. Powerful one too.

Bob sat on one shelf of a metal bookcase lining one wall. Butters had an operating table slash first aid station he'd put together from a cast-off hospital bed and other equipment he'd gleaned over the years. He was also a techno wiz, if there could be such a thing, and had created several magical devices with the assistance of Bob, my prior assistant. A second, wooden skull came to life beside Bob; Bonea, a 'child' of mine created when the fallen angel Lasciel and I…well. Long story.

"Bob, wake up," I said.

"Hello Father," Bonea said. She had a softly feminine voice.

"Hi Bonny, how are you?"

"Wonderful, thanks. How is life up there?"

"Meh, could be better."

Her eyes seemed to nod as Bob's came to life.

"Harry!" Bob said. His 'voice' sounded different, a cross between his old voice and Waldo Butters. "Long time no see!"

"I know, right? How you faring here with Butters?"

"Good, good. Boss. You know."

I nodded.

"What can I do for you, oh former Master of the fireblasting blasters?"

I chuckled. "I have a couple questions."

"Shoot."

I looked at Butters. "Um…"

"Privacy, right. You know where to find me. I need to get ready for work anyway."

I nodded. "Thanks buddy."

He left.

"So…how do I start this."

"The beginning usually works," Bob said.

I sighed. "Okay, so you know this…thing, around my neck, right?"

"Karrin Murphy?"

"No! Bob!"

He chuckled. "Yes, Harry, I helped to create it." Bob was a spirit of intellect. He'd forgotten more about magic than most people even knew.

"Anyway, so someone showed up the other day claiming to be Susan."

"Your former Paramour, right?"

"Right, and the person I had to kill on the altar in Chichen Itza."

"Right. And you didn't believe her story at face value…"

"I took off the collar so I could soulgaze her."

Bob tsked. "And your magic came all rushing back in. In addition to the Winter Mantle."

"Right. At first it was fine, but…"

"Tell me, Harry. What happened?"

"Well, Murphy and I had sex, and the tantric magic combined with the Mantle and my power caused us to switch bodies."

He giggled, gleefully. The thought of you in Murphy's tiny delectable body gives me goosebumps, Harry. Why'd you switch back?"

"Well, we were in the middle of trying to do just that, when Mab showed up. She wanted me to locate Molly and convince her to return to Arctis Tor."

"Ugh, never good to get in bad with one of the Winter Queens, Harry."

"Anyway, so it was a bad case of coitus interruptus if you know what I mean."

"Perfectly, she wrecked the atmosphere."

"And later, when we, um, coitus resumptus apparently, we didn't swap back. And Mab was affronted, and swapped us back herself."

"Okay, so what's the problem?"

"Well…ever since…"

He chuckled. "You're seeing men with a whole new attitude?"

"Yes. What can I do?"

He shrugged. "Harry, this is something of a unique situation. I've never considered even the most remote possibility of what would happen if we suppress your magic. You remember when we gave you that device, there could be side effects."

"And soul jumping is one of them?"

"You are an extremely powerful magic user without the Mantle, Harry. With the Mantle, you're like a superhero."

"So I'm my own worst enemy."

"Not you, specifically, Harry. Your Magic."

"Right."

"So there's nothing you can think of? No potion I can make or create?"

"I wish I could tell you something, Jefe, but this is new territory. Usually we are trying to release the magic within an individual, not supress it."

"Yes, Bob." I said, dryly

"It will probably return on its own, Harry. Give it some time. A soul jump like that is a traumatic experience, and you've experienced two in less than 24 hours."

I exhaled. "Okay, good."

"Meanwhile, you shouldn't wear that collar too long Harry. And I shouldn't need to tell you to be careful when you take it off."

"I will, Bob. Thank you."

"No Problemo, Mon Capitan!"

"I just don't have time for this. I tracked down Molly in Arctis Meridi yesterday, and Susan is back from the grave and needs to reconcile her sins or something. I do not have time for a sudden change in my sexuality."

Frustrated, I sat down in Waldo's gaming chair. It was multicolored, and he had multiple monitors with high end speakers. "Damn, I'm in the wronnggg business," I said.

"Well, Harry, there's always your brother."

"What's he got to do with this?"

"White Court Vampires are intrinsically Tantric. They utilize tantric magic at their core. I would suspect either he or his sister might be able to dig this out of you."

I gave that some thought. Thomas had been working at his salon, gently skimming energy from his clients each time he fixed their hair. With the Covid outbreak, he'd been stuck at home, without Justine. I knew he must be frustrated in many ways.

"I suppose it's worth a shot. Thanks."

"De nada."

I sighed. "Guess I better go see the Archive about Susan. I don't suppose you have any inkling on what she should do?"

"Are you sure she's actually Susan?"

I paused. "Who else could she be? She knew certain things about our first date no one else could have known?"

"Oh?"

"And she acts like Susan. Or, Susan stuck in a 17 year old body."

"Atoning for one's sins, has everything to do with the Atoner, Harry. She would be the one to determine who and how to atone. As a suggestion, you might have some kind of 'trial by fire' if you know what I mean."

"As in, she has to do some incredibly complex nigh impossible task in order to achieve full atonement?"

"Exactly. The powers on high don't want anyone to know they could simply apologize and be done with it. They want the guilty party to feel a sense of accomplishment at the end."

I sighed. "Ya know, I was enjoying this whole quarantine thing. Not once have I had to use my blasting rod."

"Sorry, Harry."

"I sorta figured. Thanks for the help anyway, buddy."

"My pleasure. Say, can you ask Butters if I can have a few nights off? I'd like to see a few people."

"I'll ask, but with this virus outbreak we're ordered to stay at least 6 feet away from anyone else."

"I know, I know, but it so boring down here and he never brings me any of the good stuff. Just turns on the porn and let's my eyes bleed."

I stood up. "I'll let him know."

"Be careful, Harry. Hope you get your sexuality back."

I chuckled, "Me too."

Butters and Andi were fixing breakfast, and they handed me an egg sandwich. "Got some time to join us, Harry?"

"Better not. I need to go get someone and head over to Ivy's place."

"The Archive?" Andi said. "Why do you need to see her?"

"Oh, this person has to 'atone for her sins.' I'm hoping Ivy has some ideas on who and how to do that."

"Good luck, Harry. Stay safe." Butters held the door open for me.

"Oh, and Bob wants a recess pass. Says he's getting bored with the porn and that it's making his eyes bleed."

Butters shook his head. "No can do. Last time I let him go, he ended up in a sorority house and I had to pay several thousand for broken beds and venereal disease innoculations."

I winced at that. "Well, I told him I'd ask. He did help me today."

"I'll take him down some naughty magazines. That should help. He's kind of old school when it comes to porn."

I chuckled. "Yes, he is."

"Good seeing you, Harry. Let me know how it all turns out?"

"I will. See you tonight, I hope."

"We'll be there!" Andi called from the living room.

Butters closed the door with a smile and a wave.

I folded myself into Murphy's tiny SUV, and drove off. It was nice to have empty streets, to see the budding green leaves, to feel the breeze and not have to breathe the everpresent stench of the factories based in Chicago. I had texted Susan last night before bed and told her I'd be by in the morning. She agreed, and told me to text her when I was around the corner, and she'd slip away. Her new "mother" was rather rigid about the quarantine, so we'd need to be discreet.

I found my way to a lovely two story house on the east side of chicago. I parked along the side, and sent a text from our spare phone to Susan.

A few moments later, she slipped into the car. "Drive," she said.

I followed her directions, and she exhaled, relaxing.

"Jesus, they have me on a tight leash."

"Not fun being a teenager again?"

"Not at all." She looked behind us.

"All clear?"

"I think I got away. Thank God."

"Congratulations." I smiled.

"So, where are we off to?"

"Well, I thought you might want to see your daughter."

She nodded, quietly.

"That work for you?"

She didn't say anything for a bit. "Would it…"

I waited.

"Would it be okay if I didn't? I mean, of course I want to see her. But with my very existence up in the air, I don't know if I could take it."

"Sure." I turned into a parking lot, and stopped.

She looked down, then put her hands over her face and started to cry.

"Hey," I put my hand on her back. "None of that now. We have time to see Maggie later. Where did you want to go?"

"I don't know, Harry. What do I do? I mean, this wouldn't be a bad life, you know? But each day I feel more…her, and less of me. How long before I'm just a teenage kid?"

I nodded. "What if that is the only option?"

"It would be like I really died, I guess."

"At least you have a body," I said. "I was a ghost the whole time."

"That must have been horrible, Harry. I'm so sorry you went through that."

A chime sounded somewhere. I blinked. "Did you hear that?"

She nodded. "What do you think it was?"

I have no…Susan suddenly slumped over, her head thumping on the glass of the SUV.

"Susan!" I said, shaking her. A sudden lassitude swept over me too. I sat back, trying to gather my magic, but the stupid collar was around my neck.

A moment later, oblivion intruded.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

I materialized on a set of tracks. I knew because I could feel the approaching train making them shake and buzz against the bottoms of my feet. My heart sped up.

"No, no, no, no…." I said, stepping off the tracks as the train roared by.

"Nice to see you've grown some sense," came a voice.

I glanced over and saw wingtip shoes, cheap trousers, cheap suit, and a build like a fireplug.

"Hey Carmichael. Still working the tracks, I see."

"Yeah, get in the car. The boss wants to see you."

I sighed and climbed into the back of his gold Mustang. He stuck a toothpick in his mouth and turned the engine over. It sounded like a kitten on steriods.

"Still got it," I said. "Lovely car."

"I know, right? If I have to be somewhere, driving around my version of Chicago in this car is heaven to me."

I smiled, as w drove through the streets of the city. I could see the attraction, but it really wasn't Chicago, it was all some kind of grand illusion by the great Whomever.

We stopped in front of what looked for all the world, or Underworld, like Chicago Police Department. We both bounded up the steps, and headed into the Liutenants office.

Jack Murphy looked exactly the same as I last saw him. Suit jacket on the back of his chair, white sleeves rolled up to show forearms the size of tree trunks. Blond hair, blue eyes, and he didn't look up when we walked in.

"So, I see you solved the case of your own murder." He took out a toothpick and stuck it into his mouth. I wondered if it was a habit picked up from Carmichael, or if it was just something one did when one was stuck in the great In Between.

"I did, and thank you for the opportunity."

"Forget about it." He opened a folder and scanned through it.

"Will there be anything else?"

He chuckled softly. "Sit down, Dresden. We need to talk."

I did as instructed and Carmichael left the room.

Jack sat in his chair, and leaned back, putting his massive arms behind his head. It made his pecs bulge, and briefly I wondered what kind of muscles were under that shirt. Then I shook myself, getting the alien thoughts out of my head.

"So…you've been given a second chance at life and what do you do? Almost get killed by some kinda monster in your head, give birth to some other kinda monster, oh, and raid the Underworld."

"All in a days' work."

"Right."

"Hey, there were lives at stake. My Daughter, and I'm under the thumb of the Queen of Air and Darkness too, don't forget. That's no small thing."

"That's what we're here to talk to you about."

I felt my stomach churn. "Oh?"

"You had an individual approach you yesterday." He said yesterday as 'Yestahday.'

"I did."

"And this, ah, individual. Claimed ta be someone from ya past, is that right?"

"Yes."

"And she said she had been sent back to "Atone for her sins," that true?"

I shifted. "Why? Yes. All correct, but you knew that."

"We got us a little problem here." He said hear, like 'heah.'

"What's the problem?"

"Well…you two sharing experiences. It wasn't our intent for that to happen, and the, well, boss doesn't like it."

"How is that my problem?"

"Well, she came and apologized to you today, is that right? You heard a chime and all that."

"Yes, we wondered what that was."

"Every time she atones for one of her sins, she'll hear that chime, as will the person who'd been victimized by her in the past."

"Okayyyy." I said. "So why pull me in, then?"

"Look, between the two a you, you is responsible the the genocide of…" he glanced down at his paperwork. "Over fifty-thousand distinct individuals. Now, I know they was blood sucking vampires, but the boss doesn't like them numbers, capiche?"

"What does that mean, exactly?"

"Well, we sent her back to atone for her sins. We gonna do the same thing ta you, get me?"

"Wait, why? I already found out who murdered me."

"Yah, but kid, you gotta see this is a strange circumstance. Normally, with these kinda numba's, we'd take you outta the game, ya know? But you're still a heavy hitter."

"Okay…"

"So what we gonna do, is we gonna send Susan back as she was just before ya kilt her."

"Wait, No!"

He shook his head. "Don't interrupt. I know what you're worried about. There was a…shall we say…loophole? With all them creatures ya killed. Now, the boss was okay with it at the time, but then he got ta thinking…you know, who has the right ta do that? Take advantage of a loophole and a whole race disappears from the earth? No, that ain't right."

"So, you're telling me, you're going to resurrect the Red Court, let them be a scourge again, let them kill thousands upon thousands, let them take humans as pets…"

"I told you, stop interruptin' me!" He slammed his hand down, and I heard a thunderclap.

I snapped my jaw shut with a click, biting my tongue in the process.

"Now, the boss doesn't want us sending back a bunch of Red Court Vampires, so you can cool ya jets about that. What we are gonna do, though, is send Susan back."

"As a Red Court Vampire?"

"Well, the Red Court, as an entity, will be gone, but she'll be a vamp, yeah."

"So you're turning Susan into a monster."

"I wish it could be different, kid, but the boss upstairs said yeah."

"Is there anything I can do for this not to happen? I mean, you know I'll have to kill her again, right?"

"Yeah…about that. Boss says, if you kill her, she'll just respawn right back where she was."

"So I have someone else do it?"

"Let's just say, the boss is going to make her very hard to kill. You are scrappy, though, so I'm sure you'll be able to figure something out."

It wasn't fair. We'd won. But now, we appeared to be losing, big time. Susan's sacrifice was for nothing, nothing, and I didn't know what I was going to do.

"So the "atoning for your sins" part was a lie?"

"Nope, she still needs ta do that part, but she'll be in her own body ta do it. With each sin she atones, she gains a bit more."

"So…not only will she be a monster, with each sin she'll get stronger."

"Exactly."

I rubbed my head. "And what happens if she doesn't 'atone?'"

"She gets 10 days from the moment she gets back."

"And if she doesn't make it?"

"She will forever be as she is. Locked in that way."

"And what if she atones for all her sins?"

"The boss will allow her to be human again. Or, as human as she can be."

"Sounds like a raw deal to me."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll figure out a way for that not to happen."

"Right."

"And now it's time for you to go."

"Wait, you said I also needed to atone. That mean I can apologize to her and she stops being a Monster?"

"Your atonement is receiving the person you love most, but transformed, Harry. How you deal with that, is your atonement. Basically, you can't kill her again, but all other options are on the table."

"Great, just great. And what do I tell our daughter?"

"Not our problem." Jack flipped the folder closed. "Ready to go back?"

I sighed. "No, but go ahead anyway.

Reality faded.

A moment later, I awoke. Maybe it had been a dream?

I looked over at Susan, and noticed the young girl. I gently shook her awake. "Susan?"

She looked at me, with fear in her eyes. "Who are you? Where am I?" She sounded paniced.

"Great, kid. Sorry, you passed out back there and I was taking you to the hospital. Want me to take you home?"

"Yes, please!" she said, fear in her eyes.

"Okay, okay. Let's go."

I put the car in drive and drove her home.

She dashed from the car like I was a rapist. I wondered if I should have collected Murphy first, but I don't think the girl would have been happy about pulling into a strange driveway.

Her mother stomped out to the car, and I smiled. "Brought her home. I found her at the park, kinda passed out. Might want to get her checked out."

"Which park?" She said.

"Umm…the one around the corner. I forget the name."

"Darlington?"

I knew this was a test, and that was probably a false name. "I have no idea. It's the one with the park benches, grass, all that."

She nodded. "You better not have laid a hand on her, or I will call the police."

"No, he didn't, Mom. I just woke up in his car."

"See?" I said. "All better."

"She's been acting so strangely, lately. I don't know what's gotten into her!"

"I know, right? Teenagers." I put the car in gear, and gave them another wave.

Exhaling, I drove back to our little place. I wondered where Susan was.

I got out and went into the house. Murphy was sitting in the living room.

"Well?" She said.

I shook my head, grabbing a Coke from the fridge. She'd made sandwiches and they were neatly set out on the kitchen table.

"Did you make any headway?"

"Sorta?" I said. I related the days events to her.

"Oh, God. Where do you think she materialized?"

"I dunno. Chichen Itza?"

"Would make sense."

I passed a hand over my face. "So she's the first of the new Red Court?"

"I dunno," I said. "Sounded like she'd be a bit stronger than a Red Court. Might be a whole new breed."

"Why would they do that?"

I shrugged. "Covid wasn't eliminating enough?"

"You expect her to come here, don't you."

"Yeah," I said, already tired.

"And we're going to have to kill her, aren't we." I wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"They intimated that would be very hard. Basically, I wasn't supposed to kill their newest Monster toy."

"Jesus, Harry."

I nodded, munching my sandwich.

"And Bob thinks whatever this is with our sexuality will just fade away?"

"Supposedly, but I'm having my doubts."

"I guess doing something about it is out?"

I glanced up at her. "What would you like to do?"

She sighed. "I dunno, but I've been turned on almost all day."

"Yeah."

"You too?"

I cleared my throat. "Yes, but in the wrong direction if you know what I mean."

"Definitely! I've been looking through all my old underwear catalogues!"

"Hopefully, we'll get it sorted soon. Bob said I could go talk to Thomas about the Tantric issue if it gets out of hand."

"Sounds like a good plan. So will you try to find the new Susan?"

I nodded. "Probably best to wait for her here. She only has ten days from now to atone for all her sins, or she'll be stuck. I'm pretty sure she'll come here first."

"What if she attacks you, Harry?"

"She spent five years as a half-vampire. I don't think she'll attack me as a full one. Plus, I'm not shrinking violet, ya know."

"I know, Harry, but I still worry."

"Molly has been transformed into a true Elvin Sidhe princess, Susan is going to be a vampire, and you and I had our body swap last night. It's like someone up there is rolling dice, and we're catching all snakeyes."

She snuggled in under my arm. "We could play some Arena of Combat," she said, handing me the gamepad.

"Sure, why not?" I said, as the tv flickered to the opening screen.

We played for awhile, but my heart just wasn't in it. My mind had Maal,and Susan. I wondered if Mab had let her off the hook yet, or if my apprentice was facing some sort of reprisal. It made me want to pay a visit to Arctis Tor, to see how they were getting on. I knew better, however. Best to not go looking for trouble. And Mab was always trouble.

Mab, and Mal, I thought. How alliterative. I shivered to think of Molly stuck forever as a creature like Mab. It made me sad to think of the bright, headstrong girl forced to live that life. That very very long arduous life.

A few hours later, I stood up, tossing the gamepad onto the chair. "I think I'm going to get a couple hours sleep. I suspect it's going to be a long night."

She nodded. "I'm going to stay awake. I'm also going to be armed, Harry, in case your baby-mama decides to use more forceful persuasion techniques on us, or you. The moment she tries to catch my eye, I'm blasting her blood-sucking face off."

"I sighed. I know this is hard on you, Murphy."

"Surprisingly less than you think. I'm not jealous, Dresden, but I'm also not stupid."

"Agreed." I stood up. "Wake me at the first sign of trouble though, okay?"

"Of course."

I leaned down, and we gave each other a chaste kiss.

"Nope," she said, looking up into my eyes.

"Yeah, me neither. It's like kissing my sister."

"Once you've finished with Susan, I expect you to fulfill your promises as my partner, Dresden."

I chuckled and hugged her tightly. "Of course."

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

I didn't hear the doorbell ring. Murphy woke me up around eleven pm.

"Harry," she gently shook me.

I blinked. "Hmm?"

"She's here."

I nodded, and sat up in bed.

"She uh…well, you'll need to see for yourself."

I followed Murphy out into the living room. Standing in the foyer was a creature from a nightmare.

It looked something like a giant bat, with black skin and leathery wings that flapped slowly, as if it was still trying to figure out how to close. The wings were extended, lithe, and looked powerful ending in four fingered talons. The body was stooped, and it had a paunched rounded belly above long, thin, powerful looking legs with toes tipped with long nails.

"Harry?" The voice was scratchy, somewhat feminine, and the mouth was filled with long, daggerlike teeth below darting red eyes. The ears were set back from the skull, pointed and long with membranus material stretched between the cartilaginous folds. The nose was a quivering tip between slitted folds of nostrils.

"Susan?" I said.

It nodded. It moved toward me, and a tongue darted out between the teeth, long and dripping in venom, or slime.

"Uh, let's get you something to wear."

"I know I look horrid. I'm hoping you can help me. I'm so hungry."

"Yeah." I turned to Murphy. "Get me my robe. Meet me in the lab."

Murphy nodded and hurried out.

"Look, before something happens, let's get you down to the lab."

Susan nodded, and followed me down the stairs.

I'd upgraded things, but not too much. I had a bunch of new tapestries, and I'd found a delightful used bookstore online and had been gradually replenishing my stock of books. I had some nice candles that hadn't even bet lit yet, an inlaid copper circle in the center of the room, and some light-darkening curtains adorned the small windows. I liked natural lighting, but there were times I wanted some alone time.

A comfortable leather chair, a long wooden workbench, and all my various magical implements and tools lay in various containers and surfaces. I had an entire book case full of reagents, resources, and potion ingrediants. I wished I had Bob, still, but I felt he was in better hands with Butters at the moment.

"I need you to step inside the circle, Susan."

"You don't trust me."

"No. I'm sorry, I don't. You are a creature of blood, might, and magic right now, and we need to establish some boundaries first."

"Just kill me, Harry."

"No, we've done enough of that and it didn't stick. Just step inside the circle, and let me examine you. I'll provide you with something that can sustain you, but for now, I'm not taking any chances."

"How will I ever atone for any sins when I'm a nightmare?" she stepped into the circle, and I touched it, infusing it with my will.

Breathing a sigh of relief, I picked up a dagger and slit my hand, letting the blood fall into a porceline cup. Murphy brought the robe to me.

"Just set it on the table."

"Okay," Murphy said. I could hear the nerves in her voice.

"I need you to take this off of me."

"Harry, I…"

"Take it off, Murph!"

I turned around, and Murphy pressed the release mechanism. I felt the heady flow of magic flow back into me like a warm blanket. Everything felt better, there was more color to the world, and I could hear the song between the spheres.

The cup was about a quarter full of blood. I wrapped my hand with a linen bandage.

"I'm going to hand you a robe and this cup of blood, Susan. Put the robe on, and try to drink the blood slowly. There's not a lot more where that came from."

"Should I bring you some…I dunno, hamburger or something?" Murphy whispered.

"Yeah, maybe the steaks too."

"Okay." Murphy left the room.

I picked up my staff, then released the circle, and handed the robe, and then the cup to Susan.

With a snarl, it ignored the robe, and held the cup up to the mouth. The tongue slid out and the blood flowed down. She drank all of it in one gulp, the tongue cleaning the bottom until every drop was gone.

"Or, you could do that."

"Sorry, Harry. I'm so hungry!"

"Murphy is bringing you some meat. I don't know if you'll be able to eat it or not, but let's try."

"Okay."

The creature was shivering. It put the robe on, which helped. A little.

"You should be able to create a human mask with your skin," I said.

"How?" Susan said.

"I'm not too sure." I lifted a picture off the workbench of the old Susan. "Picture in your mind what you used to look like, then close your eyes and see if you can will yourself to having one."

"God, Harry, I feel so strong. I can smell…everything. Maybe I could bite you? Just once?"

"No!" I said. "This is what I mean, Susan. Absolutely no biting me or Murphy."

Murphy returned with a couple of steaks, and handed them to me.

"I'm going to give you these steaks, Susan. Really try to slow yourself down, though, or we're going to be in trouble."

"Okay, Harry."

I tore the packaging off the steaks, then powered down the circle, and handed them to it.

Susan took one, and stuffed it in her mouth, jaws greedily consuming the meat with snarling and crunching. The second one was gone in moments as well.

"Jesus," I said. "Did that help at all?"

It nodded. "A little. I'm still hungry, but not so ravenous."

"Good. Now, try to create your flesh mask."

Susan closed those bat-like eyes. A few moments later, I could see something start to happen. In a few moments, Susan, the old Susan, was standing in the circle. I had to remember this was a nightmare creature of darkness now, no matter how much it might look like the woman I used to love.

"Good."

Susan looked down at her hands. "It worked!"

"Yes."

"Thank you, Harry."

"Now, they told me you only had 72 hours, and that was about 4 hours ago. Think you can hold yourself together if I lower the circle? We need to go see the Archive."

"I don't know why you don't just kill me, Harry."

"I was wondering the same thing!" Murphy whispered.

"I told you, that didn't go too well. And from the looks of the stomach I saw, the great Whomever also sewed up the weakness in the Red Court body. You are a 'new and improved' version, Susan. They said if we can get all your sins atoned, you will return to being completely human so that's our goal, okay?"

"Okay. But if for some reason, it doesn't work, you have to promise me to kill me, Harry."

"I will."

"You promise?"

I nodded. "I promise to try."

"I promise too," Murphy said, cocking her high-powered rifle.

Susan arched a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. Her new "flesh mask" was something of an idea form, with lustrous black hair, dark eyes that glinted in the low light of the candles in my lab, and inviting luscious red lips. If I'd been of my, well, original sexuality, it might have had an impact on me, but considering my recent change of…tastes. It felt off."

She cast her gaze at me, pursing her lips. "Do I meet with your approval, Harry?"

"Yeah, and you can turn off the vamp stuff for now. I don't swing your way anymore."

"Oh," she sounded a little disappointed.

"Plus, I know what you look like under all that."

She nodded, and stepped up to embrace me. "Can we still hug?"

I shied away. "For now, until we can get you properly fed, I don't want my neck coming within six feet of your body. Let's take social distancing to the new vampiric norm, shall we?"

Sadly, she dropped her arms. "Okay, Harry."

I led her to the small leather chair, while Murphy and I sat on the couch. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Murphy swalling a little. Apparently the glam was affecting her.

"So, I thought we could go visit Ivy, the Archive. She should know who and how you can atone for your sins."

"Oh good!" Susan said. "Shall we go now?"

"Yeah…but, a couple ground rules first. You've already felt the hunger, and we've sated it a little. But I know you're going to need more. So here they are: 1: No killing people, at least while I'm with you. 2: No killing me or Murphy, for obvious reasons. 3: No killing people."

"I get it Harry, no killing people."

"Good."

"Anything else I should know before we go?"

"Yeah, we need to test your powers. From the looks of you, I suspect they harneded your, ah, blood sac."

"You mean my stomach?"

"Yeah, on vamps it's a bit different. It was always the 'Achilles Heel' with Red court, but I noticed some pretty heavy muscles over yours."

She patted her stomach. "It does feel fairly thick, almost like an armor, or chitin."

"Not good." I stood up. "Well, let's get to the Archive and see what we can do."

"Okay, Harry." Susan walked toward the door, her ass swaying back in forth under a dress that appeared made from blue silk.

"I am so glad your playing for the other team right now, Dresden." Murphy whispered in my ear.

"I know, right? I'll be sure not to become a midnight snack."

The three of us walked out to Murphy's SUV. I drove, Murphy rode shotgun, literally, and Susan sat in the back.

I drove through the silent streets of Chicago. Rain fell lightly, casting the streets in a misty eerie glow. I glanced in the review mirror, and Susan caught my eye, giving me a small smile. How far we'd come since that first almost date, to our night of passion, and the craziness with the Red Court.

She winked at me, parting her lips. I shook my head, glancing over at Murphy. She gave a cute little pout, that probably might have worked on me at one time, but now…

"It's crazy how quiet it is," Murphy said.

"Yeah, been like this all day."

"Surreal," Susan said.

We pulled up to the foster care facility I knew was the current home of Ivy. I cast a glamour spell over us, and we were able to sneak past the guard stations as they changed shifts.

As we approached the door, it opened.

"Hi Ivy," I whispered.

"You're taking a risk, Harry!" she giggled.

"Sorry it's so late, but it's an emergency."

"I know."

We got inside her small dorm room. Luckily, she didn't have a roomate.

"How've you been, short stuff?" I said, giving her a brief hug.

"Not too bad, Harry. All things considered."

"This is Murphy, and this is Susan."

Ivy shook Murphy's hand, but paused when she glanced at Susan. "It's okay, she's on our side."

"Yes," Susan said.

"So what can I do for you?" Ivy said.

Ivy was The Archive, the physical repository for all the knowledge of mankind. She was a physical construct, who held everything that mankind was, is, and ever would be. This had a tendency to make the person who was the physical conduit a bit crazy; but I'd always known Ivy to be perfectly reasonable, if sometimes a bit cryptic.

"Susan, ah…"

He remembered he'd never told her he'd been close to death, nor that he was a ghost for awhile. Though she must have found out by now. Someone must have written something down about him.

"I know of your past, Harry. Several of the wizards in the White council have scribed your events."

"Okay, so you know I was a ghost for a bit?"

"Mhmmm, and I was sad you didn't trust to tell me."

"Well, I know I'm one of your few true friends, Ivy."

"And I know what you had to do for Susan. But I don't know why she is back, nor why she is apparently some type of vampire now."

"I've been told to atone for all of my sins. If I can do it in the next 30 days, I can be returned to humanity. If I fail…this is all I will ever be."

"Would that be a bad thing?" Ivy said.

"Well, yes." Susan sat down on her small bed. "I'm a monster that feeds on the living in order to survive. It would be a horrible life."

"Would it?"

"Well, yes! Harry would have to…kill me, probably."

"Would you have to kill her Harry?"

I nodded. "If she were killing people in my city, yes."

"What if she didn't kill anyone in your City?"

I shrugged. "Well, as long as she didn't do that, and she didn't try to grow the Red Court again…"

"You could allow her to live?"

I shrugged. "Yes."

"And, Susan…"

Susan looked over at her.

"Is a shark evil for hunting seals? Or a wolf hunting rabbits?"

"Well, no. They're predators."

"As are you, now."

"Yes, but…it's wrong to kill people."

"If you were a human, yes. But now…you're more than just human. You are a predator of humans."

Susan sighs. "But I don't want to be like this."

Ivy nodded. "I understand, I really do. What I'm trying to get you to see is, it isn't black and white. It isn't good and evil. There are more than one state of living. As you are you are an incredibly powerful creature, able to live an extremely long time. Think of the things you could learn, see, experience."

"I guess it wouldn't be..."

"You can literally appear as anyone, too. Male, female, old, young. That mask can be crafted however you'd like it to be. Or you can just be you, a creature of the night, free to fly and experience the freedom of knowing nothing exists above you on the food chain."

Susan nodded, smiling a little.

"So, if we didn't want her to be like this for the rest of her, admittedly, long life. What would she need to do?"

Ivy sighed. "Unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to say, directly. You know how these things work, Harry."

"What can you tell us?"

"You've apologized to the one person in the world who needed it the most, already. There is one other, however, and I doubt she'll be as forgiving."

"Can you tell us where to find her?"

Ivy closed her eyes. "Seek ye, to your brother for one who attends his workplace shall provide an answer you seek."

"Great."

"Does that help?"

"Talk to Thomas.

She nodded.

"And someone who either works with or for him?"

"I don't know the answer to that, Harry. Just that this person frequents his establishment."

"Okay."

"Is there anything else I can do?"

"Ummm, well. Not at the moment. Unless you happen to know where Molly might be?"

"Molly? No. Sadly, I am the repository of all human knowledge. Not Sidhe."

"I thought so."

"Wellp," I said, getting up. "Thanks for the info."

"You're welcome, Harry." She looked sad. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to answer your question directly."

Harry gathered her up in a hug. "It's okay, Ivy. You did your best."

We walked back out to the car, and drove off.

"Well, that was…enlightening," Susan said.

"Which part?" Murphy said.

"I just thought if this ever happened to me, it would be the end of the world. But she showed me it wouldn't be. I might be able to have a life like this, if things don't work out how we want them to."

I nodded, not wanting to think about that. Murphy took my fingers in hers.

"We can find a place outside town, Harry."

"Okay," I said. "We should probably get some shut eye. It's pretty late."

"Agreed," Susan said.

We drove Susan to a Holiday In Express out along route 294 toward Milwaukee.

"You're staying out here so you can hunt," I said. After she got out of the car.

"Well, like Ivy said. I am a predator now, Harry. I might as well learn to get used to it."

"Don't get too used to it, if you know what I mean. I want you to be a human, again."

She nodded.

"And if you ever have any doubts, just drop the mask and look in a mirror."

"I won't have a reflection."

"Exactly."

"You'll talk to Thomas tomorrow?"

"Yes."

"Good, and you'll let me know when you know something?"

"Of course."

"Good."

She walked toward me. "May I have a hug?"

The way she said it, I almost caved. Then I shook my head. "No, I think it's best we don't, Susan. For many, obvious reasons." I glanced over to Murphy, sitting in the back of the SUV.

She nodded, sadly.

Murphy and I drove back to our house, silently.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

"And she said to ask me?" Thomas said.

We were having coffee out on the veranda of Thomas's skyscraper townhouse. Raith Industries owned the building and he had one half of the top floor, with Lara in the other half. Lara sat at the table with us, her dark hair unbound and slightly messy.

"She said something about someone who 'frequents your establishment will provide the answers I seek.'"

Thomas nodded. His sleek black hair shone in the morning sun, shading his face in a gentle light that played off his jawline. I hadn't really recognized until right now how truly Godlike he appeared, from his jawline down his pectorals, to his glutes. They all appeared carved from stone. It was no wonder he held such sway with the ladies, I could help but blush as I sat and sipped coffee, crossing my legs.

"Harry!" Lara said, setting her cup down.

Startled, I jumped a little. "What?"

"What they hell happened to you? Did something happen when Susan turned into a vampire?"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Nooo."

She looked at me, turning her head so she could appraise me fully. "You have barely noticed me, this entire time and I had all my glam going!"

"Ahh. Yeah, that's a separate problem I was going to talk to…um…"

"Tell me!" she said.

I sighed. "Well…Tantric Magic has strange effects."

Thomas frowned. "Yes, but not usually a sexuality change. Give, Harry."

I tapped the collar. "So this thing makes it so I'm not blowing out your Climate Control System right now. It's a magic dampening collar that Butters' made. It's been something of a blessing — I can actually watch TV with Murphy, and a curse — when I took it off the other day, well…"

"Go on," Thomas said, in that deep voice.

"So when I took off the collar, the mantle and my magic rushed back in. And shortly thereafter Murphy and I made love…"

"And?" Lara said, literally sitting on the edge of her seat.

"And, well. I ended up in her body. Definitely a Tantric spell. It was like we were breathing each other in for awhile."

"Oh my Goddess!" Lara said, squealing and clapping her hands.

"But you rectified the situation?" Thomas said, still frowning.

I sighed. "It got rectified for us. So, we were trying to recreate it, early in the morning when Mab popped in on us because the Mantle had been disturbed."

"Coitus Interruptus!" Lara said. "I hate that more than anything in the World."

"Yeah, and when we tried to, ah, Coitus Continuous, we both kind of fell asleep before the swap could happen. So Mab took things into her own hands, and poofed us back to our own bodies."

"Oh dear." Lara said, staring at me.

"What?"

She giggled. "You going to tell her, or should I, brother?"

"I'm not a 'her,' I'm me, Harry."

Thomas put his hand up and wiggled it side to side. "You are and you aren't. You are Harry -ish, for sure. Thoughts, Memories, yes. But Lara and I both noticed your aura has changed, and you mentioned the sexuality shift."

"Right."

"So, you're partly back to being you, but not completely. You're partly still Murphy stuck in there."

"In fact, I'd say mostly Murphy, brother. It's really just memories and magic that are all Harry."

I blinked. "But I don't feel like I'm Murphy. Not at all. And I know she doesn't feel like me."

"That's the soul anchor," Thomas said. "That part is all you. I'd say you're about equal parts Murphy and Harry, right now. I wonder how well you might do Karate…"

"Aikido," I said, distantly. "With Jujitsu, Krav Maga, Taekwando, Judo, and King Fu. Karate is for Pansies."

Thomas grinned. "I rest my case."

Strangely, I could feel all of what I just said. Which, kind of scared me. Because if I had Murphy's skills in Martial Arts, I wondered if…

"Forzare," I said softly, holding my hand out to the side. A breeze flitted through the room, an invisible force.

"Oh, she isn't going to be happy about that. I've taken her martial arts, and I also have my Magic."

"That's because magic is mostly knowledge, Harry. Martial arts is muscle memory. Two very different things."

I nodded. "So how do we fix it?"

Bother and sister looked at each other. Then Thomas said: "He's not going to like that."

"What choice does she have?" Lara said, giggling.

"Hey!" I said, slapping the table. "I'm right here."

Thomas nodded, then steeled himself. "Um…you need a third party to become involved in your tantric circle. Maybe a fourth party."

"How do you mean?"

Lara smiled. "It means, Harry Karrin Murphy Dresden, one of us needs to 'help' you along to patch you back up. Spirit, mind, body, and souls."

I nodded. "What would that look like? And isn't spirit and soul the same thing?"

"Nope, two totally different essences. Spirit is your nature; how happy you are most days, how forceful. It's tied to personality. Soul is directly tied to the Aura, and is related to the component of yourself that is also a component of the One, or God, Goddess, etc. We like to call it the Thrum."

"Okayyy," I scratched my head.

"Regardless, you'll need a powerful Tantric Mage to untangle you." Thomas, looked over at his sister. "And Lara happens to be quite knowledgeable in that."

I nodded. "What would we need to do?"

She smiled. "I would be an intermediary of your Aspects."

"I don't know what that means, and I've been a Wizard for a long time."

"You know how you consider Ivy the Archive? The depository of all of mankind's knowledge?"

"Yes."

"In a similar circumstance, Lara would become the Conduit. She would take in both of your Aspects, reassimilate them, and cast them back into your vessels."

"I'd perform the soul swap, Karrin," Lara said.

"It's Harry, not…" but was it? Now that she said it, I felt something deep inside me stir.

"Ahh, someone is coming to understand the depth of the issue, aren't they?" Lara said, with a grin.

"Look, just get us fixed. I have to deal with Susan who's now an uber vamp-monster before time runs out.

"Would you like to take care of this now?" Lara said. "I can be over in an hour or so."

"Yes, that would be great." I stood up. "Is there anything I need to prepare?"

"Both of you need to shower. Get as clean as possible."

"Why? Does it interrupt the spell?"

"No, but I don't want COVID germs all over myself."

I chuckled. "Vamps can get COVID?"

"Absolutely," Thomas said. "No one is safe."

"Oh, what a world this has become," I said.

"Go home. Shower. Candles. Anything else that will set the mood for us," Lara said.

"What will we do regarding what the Archive said?" I looked at Thomas.

"Look," Thomas said, also standing up and putting a hand on my shoulder. "You aren't going to be good to anyone, until you're one hundred percent 'Harry.' Get your things sorted, then we can take a look at that. I have an idea, but again, I don't think you're going to like it."

"Great," I said, patting him back.

And I clenched my jaw against the way his hand felt against my shoulder.

An hour later, we were prepared. Murphy and I sat on the couch, arm in arm. Both of us showered and in bathrobes. I had talked her through the encounter, and we found many of their answers to be true.

For one thing, Murphy apparently had my affinity for dogs and cats, now. I had always loved dogs, but now when I thought of Mouse, I thought of him as a giant walking allergy. Murphy was allergic to pets and had never really liked them, hence why Mouse and Mister were both in the care of the Carpenters at the moment.

My abilities extended into Murphy's martial arts, but also Tai0chee. Which was weird. And yoga. When I used to do yoga, it did not look like yoga. Now I could downward dog like the best of them.

Lara arrived.

She looked pretty. No makeup, going au natural, and she wore leggings, a black tank top, and comfortable sneakers. Her hair was pulled up into a high pony, with her dark hair swishing around her shoulders. I liked her perfume.

"So what do we do?" Murphy said, after we'd said hello and exchanged brief hugs.

"Pillows, cushions, into the center. Harry, I'm sure you're familiar with a circle, we will be creating a tantric circle with 7 candles."

It took us some time, but we followed her directions. I lit the last candle.

"Draw the curtains, we don't want the outside light to disrupt us."

We did as instructed. Lara took out some silk handkerchief in different colors and laid them over the lights. It created a lovely atmosphere.

"Now, we need to remove that collar, Harry." Lara touched it.

"Murphy, if you could be so kind." I knelt on one of the pillows. Murphy touched the release and I felt the sweet sweet flow of magic slide back into my body.

"Harry," Murphy said.

"Hmm?" I was starting to feel a little lightheaded from the incense candles.

"Do you think we should let, you know who, know what we're doing?"

"Mmm." I said. "That would be bad, if she showed up in the middle of this."

"I can cloak our activities from any outside influences," Lara said.

"Now, we sit inside the circle. Hands on knees."

Murphy and I sat, indian style, crossing our legs and resting our hands on our knees.

"Palms up." Lara did the same. We made a triangle, Murphy, Me, and Lara. On my left was Lara, on my Right Murphy.

"Perfect," Lara said, shaking her hair back. "Now, join hands."

I did. Murphy's hand was in my much larger one, warm and soft. Lara on the other side, cooler, but her skin felt much smoother. Murphy had callouses from years of martial arts and weaponry. Lara's hands felt smooth, silky and warm.

"Inhale through the nose, out through the mouth."

Soft music began playing. I watched as they both closed their eyes. I followed suit, inhaling deeply through my nose, and out through my mouth.

"Relax every part of you," Lara said in a soft voice. "Feel the breath drawn into your lungs, and all the contaminants and illness breathed out. In comes the good air, and out goes the bad."

She struck a rhythm with her voice. The music, the aromas, the warmth all surrounded me. It felt so nice, so peaceful, so warm.

"Nice, peaceful, and warm," Lara said, again. I hadn't even realized she'd been speaking. It was like her words were my thoughts.

"My words, your thoughts," she said in a low voice.

"Feel the relaxation slide up your body, beginning with your toes…"

I could feel the warmth as she spoke in that soft low tone. It was so easy to listen to. So easy to let go, relax, and listen.

"So easy to just fall into a state of trance with me…"

I felt myself breathing, my soul leaving with each breath. I felt their hands, grasping mine, intermingling, entwining. It was so easy to let go…

"So natural, so normal. It feels so nice to be in this state with me."

I could feel myself floating up, my spirit entwining with theirs, becoming one. No beginning…

"…No end. Each of us combining into the other…"

Our souls meshed together, becoming one.

"One soul, one spirit, one Essence…"

I could feel with each word, the reality coming true.

"Now I will count down from ten. When I hit one, you will fall into a deep state of consciousness. Ten…"

I could feel myself slowly getting sleepy.

"Nine…"

Lower and lower I sank. My eyelids getting heavier and heavier.

"Four…"

My mind felt so sluggish and slow. My thoughts grinding to a halt.

"One…"

Darkness intruded.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

I awoke, feeling refreshed, and invigorated. Harry and Karrin sat to my left and my right. Their eyes opened.

Something wasn't right…I shouldn't be seeing Harry and Murphy, right? I mean, I should see me and Murphy. I mean…Lara…

"Mmmm, I feel so much better now." Murphy's eyes opened and look to Harry with such love and devotion.

Harry smiled at her. "Me too."

I blinked. Wait, that wasn't right.

"Wait, this isn't right."

"What's not right, Lara?" Harry said.

"No, I'm not Harry, I'm Lara," I said.

Murphy giggled. "Someone's breathed too much of the incense."

"Murphy, no. This isn't right. She's stolen my body!"

Harry smiled, standing up and stretching. "Why, Lara, whatever are you going on about?"

Murphy looked a bit confused.

Harry ran a hand over her face. "Sleep." Murphy's head tipped down with her eyes closed.

"What have you done?" I said.

"Oh, Lara." Harry said, stretching and going to a full length mirror in the living room. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to be rid of that curse and be someone strong, someone magical, someone worthy."

"Give me back my body, you bitch!" I held up my hands, ready to unleash holy hell on her, er, him.

He chuckled. "Go ahead and try, Lara."

"Forzare!" I said, in a loud voice.

Nothing happened.

"Fuego!"

Again, nothing happened. I didn't feel magic at all. Instead, I felt a strange kind of hunger that didn't come from my belly. It was like my soul was hungry. I needed to feed.

A change came over me. I advanced on him, my prey.

"Look in the mirror, dear Lara."

I looked up.

I could see Lara Raith, eyes silver and shining. Looking beautiful and predatory in the light cast by the candles. With an effort, I shook myself and the sheen, the hunger, abated somewhat.

"Welcome to your new life, Lara."

"No!" I said. "I trusted you. Put me back, now!"

He shook his head. "Nope. Sorry, Lara, but this was too good of an opportunity. The great thing is, you can't even tell people who you really are."

"Of course I can. I'm Lara Raith." I shook my head. "I'm Lara Raith"

He chuckled.

"I'm a vampire of the White Court. I'm Lara Raith!"

I had tried to say Harry Dresden, Wizard, but it was like my mind wouldn't allow me to say who I truly was.

"Look, Lara," Harry said. I couldn't even think of him as Lara, he was…Harry. Ugh, it was infuriating.

"You're a powerful White Court Vampire. You have all the money you could possibly need or want. You are admired, valued, and recognized as the head of the Raith family empire. I encourage you to allow yourself to be that, become who you now are, and forget your former life entirely."

As she said those words, I could almost feel my mind shifting in response.

"You have no idea what you've done," I said.

"Oh, I think I do. I've taken on your magic, and your Mantle. I know I'll have to face…you know who…and soon, but my aura matches yours, my mind matches yours, and I have access to all your memories and abilities. In all essence, I am Harry Dresden now. I was hoping I could get you to truly feel Lara, but core identity is a difficult thing to erase completely. All I can say, is that before you know it, you will be Lara in body, mind and soul. Through and through."

I swallowed. "You realize Mab will take you apart bit by bit when she finds out what you've done."

"Will she, though?" Harry smiled.

"I think she'll probably see through you within about five minutes."

"Think so?"

"I know so. She's very particular about her Winter Knight."

"Oh, Mab!" Harry said. "I summon thee, my Queen."

A moment later, the Queen of Air and Darkness appeared. She wore the same dark blue silk dress, and had her hair coiffed in a french roll that looked particularly fetching. "What is it, my Knight."

"How fares things with Lady Maal?"

She gave a tight smile. "None of your concern, my Knight. Now, why did thee summon me?"

"Oh, I wanted to introduce you to Lara Raith. She is head of the White Court now, and a possible ally in our fight against the Outsiders."

"Greetings, Lady Raith."

"Mab!" I said. "This is not as it appears."

She frowned. "What do you mean? How does this appear?"

"I mean, I'm not who he said I was. I'm me! I'm the — "

"Sir Knight, why did thee summon me to meet someone obviously touched? If this being can help us in our future endeavors, please ensure she is at least of sound mind."

"Yes, my Queen," Harry said.

"But!"

"Silence!" Mab responded, and I could feel my throat tightening. I tried to speak, but only air came out.

"Thank you for the introduction, my Knight. Now, I need to attend to the Winter Lady, if I may take your leave."

"Of course, my Queen."

"Thank you." And with that, she was gone.

Harry chuckled, getting up from his chair, his eyes wide with glee. "See? I passed! You know what this means?"

"It means, she'll probably add decades onto your punishment when she finds out!"

He chuckled, wrapping his long arms around himself.

This couldn't be real. I stared into the mirror. My black hair had been pulled up into a scrunchy and cascaded around my shoulders in lovely curls. My ice-blue eyes were framed by perfectly arched brows, a delicate nose, and full lips with deep natural coloring. I was gorgeous, powerful, strong, and feminine.

Reaching over for his staff, he stared at all the runes, I'd inscribed into the surface.

"I know what all of these mean, now. Wow, you were dedicated, Harry. This must have taken months to create.

"Seven," I said softly.

With an effort of will, the runes and magical symbols came to life, glowing a soft blue glow. "Forzare!" he said, thrusting his hands out toward me.

An immense force lifted me off my feet, and hurled me back against the wall. The ponytail at the back of my head bounced painfully, and I grit my teeth.

He walked around, trying different spells both with and without the staff.

I brushed myself off, running my fingers through my long black hair. "Look, are you through yet? You've had your fun, Harry, now put me back."

"Don't make me test my fire casting ability on you, Lara," he said. "Now that I have my sexuality back, I think I'll go make long sweet love to my life partner here." He leaned over, and gave her a kiss. She blinked awake.

"Oh, did I fall asleep?"

"Yes, babe," Harry said. "You must be tired." Harry wiggled his eyebrows at Murphy.

"Why don't you go crawl under the covers, lover, and I'll bid Lara here goodbye."

"Okay," Murphy giggled, and ran back to the bedroom.

The bedroom I should have been following her into. Our bedroom. MY bedroom. This was wrong on so many levels.

Harry put his hand on my shoulder. "Look, Lara." He guided me toward the door. "Perhaps in a few days, I might be persuaded to return to my body. But not if you make this hard, darling, do you understand?"

"How many days," I said.

"Oh…let's say by the end of the week. You needed to work with my brother on finding the person who knows what Susan should do, yes? He's going to suggest working in the salon. You can be the one to do that, in fact, you've done it before."

"I have?"

"Yes, when you had sworn off hunting for awhile and he taught you how to skim. Remember?"

Did I remember? It seemed I did have a vague recollection of doing that. I'd stopped hunting because it really did tear me up inside to take a human life, no matter how humane it was, or how much they enjoyed it. I really needed to feed, this was getting bad. I wondered if I could seduce Harry into…

Wait, that was Lara talking, not me. I am Harry Dresden. Warden and Knight of the Winter Court.

I realized if I could get to Molly…er Maal, I might just have a chance. Molly knew me better than anyone, and if I couldn't convince her, I couldn't convince anyone. She was an experienced Neuromancer and could probably reverse things, if they could be reversed.

"I'll tell Susan you're going undercover, so to speak, at the Salon. When you learn something, let me know. Okay, Lara?"

I sighed. "Okay." It wasn't but if I picked up a chair and threw it into Harry, I might break something I really didn't want broken.

"Now, begone, Vampire!" He said the words with conviction, and I felt myself literally walking out the door.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

I apparently now drove a white BMW i8 roadster convertible. It was a gorgeous car, white with black accents. I pressed the start button and the car purred to life. I pressed the sunglass compartment and it eased open, handing me a pair of Cartier Paris 18k gold sunglasses that looked damned sexy on me.

I put the sunglasses on, and pursed my lips in the mirror, running my fingers through my bangs to make sure they were perfect, then pressed the accelerator. The car responded perfectly, the wheel turning the wheels moving elegently as I drove through the early afternoon deserted streets of Chicago.

That bitch had stolen my body.

I drove to the penthouse, and stalked into the building. Jerry opened the door for me, just like he always did.

"Welcome back, Ms. Raith."

"Thank you, Jerry."

"Can I have anything sent up to your penthouse?"

"Not right now, but thank you. Are you staying safe from the virus?"

"Of course, Ms. Raith. Doing everything we can."

"Excellent, Jerry. Say hi to Ingram for me."

"I will, Ms. Raith."

I inserted my key into the lock in the elevator, then pressed my thumb to the activator. Immediately, the elevator rose directly to the top.

I got out. I wanted a shower, badly, but I also wanted to visit with Thomas about my assignment…and…was there something else?

Not bothering to knock, I opened his door, and walked into the foyer, putting my sunglasses back into my purse.

"How did it go?" He said.

"Perfectly, of course."

"You got them back where they belong?"

I frowned. This wasn't right. None of this was right. I looked out the open wall of Thomas's penthouse and could see all of Chicago laid out in front of me. I knew my, I mean, Lara's view was even more spectacular. And where Thomas's penthouse was dark, mine was light. I knew if I wallked in there, fresh flowers in a vase would be sitting on the table. I had a luxury bathtub that I wanted to…luxuriate in. I had everything I could possibly need or want at an instant's request, the benefit of being not only super-rich but super-powerful.

"Lara?" Thomas said.

"Hmm?"

"Did you?"

"Did I what, darling?"

"Did you get them back where they belong."

"Oh. Ummm."

"Something wrong?"

I frowned. Wasn't there something wrong? Yes. Definitely. Something was Definitely Wrong.

"Yes." I said

"Yes what?"

I put my hand to my head. "Something is definitely wrong."

"Can you be a little more specific?"

I blinked, looking at my brother. He was so strong, so handsome, so debonair. God, I needed to feed. I wanted to take a bath, get gorgeous, and go out and hunt.

"I don't think I'm where I'm supposed to be."

"What do you mean?"

I thought about that. What did I mean? I mean, I was home, right? With Thomas, my brother? That was right, right?

"I mean, something happened."

"What, Lara? What happened?" he came to me, standing right in front of me.

"Thomas, oh my god. She stole my body."

"Wait, what?"

"Harry, I mean…Lara. She stole my body!"

"So you aren't Lara."

I frowned. "Yes, well, no, I'm not. Not the Lara you know. I'm…"

"Harry?"

"Yes! That's it. I'm really…who you said."

"What the hell happened?"

"I don't know, exactly. We were preparing. She led us through some…breathing. Then I woke up, and I'm…here. Ugh, it's so hard to think me."

"Hard to think you?"

"Yes, me…um…the wizard."

"Harry."

"Yes! Thomas you have to do something!"

Thomas, shook his head. "Harry, or Lara, I don't know how to tell you this, but Lara is the only one I know who has that level of Tantric Magic."

He sighed and walked over to his computer screen where he pressed the facetalk button. I heard the faux ringing in the background, and the bloop when it didn't answer.

"I think they might be, um, getting busy," I said.

"That isn't good, Harry. Let's get over there."

Which is how I ended up in Thomas's matching black Mercedes i8 roadster convertible. He drove much faster than I did, ignoring most of the streetlights.

We got to the Dresden residence, and I followed Thomas up to the front door where he pounded on the door incessantly.

Harry opened it awhile later, wearing a bathrobe. His hair was delightfully messed up.

"What?" he said in a loud voice. "We Do Not wish to be disturbed, Thomas, if you know what I mean."

"Lara, cut the crap," Thomas said. "What have you done?"

"God, is she still going on about that? She thinks she's Harry Dresden. She's nuts, now leave us alone!"

Thomas shot an arm out and caught Harry by the throat. He walked inside, holding Harry up as the wizard started to choke.

"In…fr…ig…a!" he said, and ice blasted into the room, coating everything including Thomas's arm in ice. Thomas was forced to let go, lest his arm freeze and shatter.

"Look, Brother I don't want to hurt you. I don't know what that bitch said, but you know Lara…"

"And I know you, 'Harry,' and no matter how angry you might be you wouldn't have blasted me just now. So shut the fuck up, sit down, and tell me what's going on!"

Murphy had come out to see what all the shouting was about. "What's this now?"

"Ugh!" Harry said. "Fineeee, Thomas. I was just having a little fun, and you had to come and spoil it."

"Harry?" Murphy said. "What's going on?"

"My sister," Thomas said, fury making his voice a hiss. "While she had access to your and Harry's body, switched into Harry and put him in Lara."

Murphy blinked. "Is that true?"

I nodded. "Yeah, Murph. It's me in here. Or…somewhat me. It's hard to think, and I'm so damned hungry."

"Why didn't you say something?" Murphy said.

"I did, but she had some kind of block on me that wouldn't let me say my own name. In fact, I still can't say it. 'I'm Lara Raith.' See?

"You mean, I just had sex with…"

"Oh, Gods, Lara. Tell me you did not—"

"I did! I came! And so did she!" He cackled gleefully.

Murphy gave a shy smile, like a schoolgirl on her first date. It made my heart break, the way her eyes lit up when she looked at him.

Thomas turned to me. "Harry, tell me something and be completely honest. Have you climaxed since being put in that body?"

"Um, no?" I said. "At least, I don't think so. It's been less than an hour, for gods sake, how did you…and why is that important?"

I immediately felt something slide into me from somewhere. I gasped, spreading my legs a little. "Oh my god, what is that?" I said.

Harry cackled again.

"Stop it, Lara! Right now!" He went over and moved to slap Harry across the face, but Harry took up his staff. "Defendarius!" he said, and Thomas was turned aside by a magical forcefield I knew only too well.

Problem was, I couldn't really concentrate on what was happening, because some…thing, was thrusting into me. Something warm and thick, and it pulsed. I moaned softly.

"Fight it, Harry!" Thomas said, struggling to get to Lara in my body.

"I'm…t. .." I said, but the last part of that word came out as a gasp.

"Murphy!" Thomas said, as a gale rose inside the house. "Distract him!"

Murphy blinked. "Why is everyone so upset? I don't understand what's going on?"

I couldn't help myself. My legs parted a bit on their own as whatever it was forced it's way into me. Moaning, my hips started to gyrate in response.

This was not happening. I thought about the lineup of the Chicago Cubs, going through jersey numbers and batting averages. Thomas hammered on the shield as the wind tore our voices away from our mouths, a cyclonic rushing so I could hear nothing but Thomas roaring as he thrust himself time and again against the shield. I knew he couldn't hold it forever, not against Thomas, especially enraged Thomas.

Murphy pulled out a pistol. She pointed it at Thomas, a frown creasing her lovely face

"Murph, no!" I said, my voice rising as the thrusting increased. "Shoot Harry!"

This body was designed for sex, being sensual in all the right places. I felt warmth in my groin and my nipples hardened as the thrusting continued.

Something pinched one of my nipples, hard, pulling and I squealed, the thing impaling me thrusting even deeper and faster.

"Oh god!" I said. Then repeated. "Oh, god, oh god, ohgodohgodohgod, OHhhhhhHHH!" I screamed, feeling something flood through me. My body trembled, and my toes tried to curl up into my designer sneakers. I spasmed over and over, as the gale finally relaxed, and the shield dropped.

"It's done!" Harry laughed. "She came!"

I was still spasming, wanting to lay down, running my fingers through my hair. "W. just happened?"

Thomas's shoulders slumped. He turned to me. "I'm so, so sorry, Harry."

"Will someone please tell me, w. just happened, and what was just in me?"

Harry chuckled, sitting on the sofa. "A spirit tentacle." He wiggled his fingers and looked at Thomas. "Wizard!"

"Yeah yeah, don't rub it in."

"Why was it so important that I shouldn't climax."

Thomas sighed, walking over to me. "The tantric Magic, Harry. You better sit down for this."

I nodded, waddling over to the chair and sitting down. After the orgasm, if that's what that was, I felt incredibly good, incredibly…incredible, actually. Alive like I've never felt before. I wiggled my fingers, marvelling at how they felt, their long-nailed tips

"I guess I'm not understanding," I said. "I actually feel a lot better."

"Of course, you do," Thomas said. "Your mind, spirit, and soul just aligned to your body."

"You mean Lara's body?"

"No, idiot." Harry said. "That's your body now. Signed, sealed and delivered."

I looked at Thomas, who could only close his eyes and nod his head.

"Ah crap."

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Thomas put his hand on my shoulder and when did he get so tall? "A powerful Tantric has the ability to cast their soul into anyone of their choosing."

"Okay," I said.

"Spirit is something else entirely. That is what is tied up with your Magic, Harry."

It felt strange for him to be calling me Harry, I realized. I was Lara.

"It's nearly impossible to take someone against their will. That's why she led you through the exercises. All it should have been was a realignment of your Spirit, Mind, and soul, into your body, your Harry Dresden, body."

"Right."

"Lara decided to pull a fast one, though. Instead of having your mind and spirit align with your Harry Dresden body, she put you in Lara Raith, and performed magic to align your spirit that way. The orgasm seals the deal. You can't orgasm against your will, not really, so when your body does that, when your spirit and soul allows that bodily experience to happen, all three become perfectly aligned."

"So, she just needs to reverse it, put me back."

"I can't!" Harry said. "Don't you see, that's the beauty of it!"

"She…He's right, unfortunately, Harry. If a Tantric Practioner uses the art on themselves, the magic stays with the body. It's why she has access to all your magic."

"Oh, so *I* can put us back, then?"

"You could, if you were steeped in Tantric Magic. It took Lara…what…a hundred—"

"Two Hundred."

"Okay, Two Hundred years to learn how to perform that. It requires a Master level Tantric, and the knowledge is only a small part."

"But if I have the knowledge, like she knows how to use my magic, I should be able to do it again, right?"

Yes, but there's a problem.

"I'm the one that made both of you cum!" Harry giggled with glee.

Thomas nodded. "By bringing you both to orgasm, the magic understands that as 'permission to move on.' So therefore it can't be wrested back from them. You could, conceivably, learn enough tantric magic to perform the same spell, but you couldn't perform it on Harry, it would have to be on someone else. Someone that A: gave you permission, B: would allow you to lead them through the deep hypnotic state necessary, C: permit to access Spirit, Mind, and Soul essences and reorganize them, and D: permit to obtain an orgasm, aligning the three states."

"That's a lot of elements," I said.

"So you see the problem."

"Mab put me back in my body, and shuffles bodies all the time. I can just go to her again."

"It won't work!" Harry giggled.

"Why?"

"Because, Lara dear, you are sealed in that body. You have the White Court Curse!"

"Vampires of any court are not allowed to swap essences, per the accords."

"Not just the accords, brother. Do you know how long I have dreamed of this very opportunity? It was practically handed to me!"

He sighed. "I'm so sorry, guys. I should have seen this coming. I really didn't understand how deep my sisters disquiet with herself had become."

"So, even if Mab knew about it, there wouldn't be anything she can do?"

"Exactly!" Harry said.

I thought about Molly/Maal. I decided not to play that card just yet, however. Best to let 'Harry' think he'd won.

"I think my fiance and I will go back to bed, since you so rudely interrupted our lovemaking. Won't we, sweetcheeks?" Harry gave Murphy a swat on her behind.

She frowned, looking at me. "That's my fiance, not yours!" I said.

"Umm," Murphy said.

"I'm really sorry, Harry."

"Tell you what, let's let the lovely Karrin Murphy decide." Harry turned to her. "Karrin, my dear. Which of us would you like in your bed tonight. Myself? Or the lovely Lara Raith."

She winced, looking at me. "Sorry Lara."

Harry triumphantly put his arm around the woman I loved more than anyone in this world or the next. He leaned down and gave her a passionate kiss.

"Oh, Karrin." Harry said. "You've made me so happy. In fact, would you do me the immense honor of being my wife?" Harry pulled something out of his pocket. Something I had purchased a month ago. Something I had been waiting for just the right time to present to her.

Karrin's eyes lit up. "Truly, Harry?"

Harry beamed at her. "Yes, truly. Become my wife."

"I.I.I don't know what to say," she stammered. She looked at me, her eyes in pain.

"Why is this happening?" I said, looking to my brother.

"Tantric, Harry. It's an…addiction. They are so skilled in bed that…well, anyone they have sex with essentially becomes their love slave."

"Can I have a few moments alone with her, please?" I said.

"Of course!" Harry said, beaming. "Take her into the bedroom. Take all the time you need, Lara. We'll be waiting out here."

I took Murphy by the arm and led her into the bedroom. She inhaled deeply, shaking her head.

"Karrin, I know you're in there. Do you see what's happening? This is me, Har…ry. You know that, right?"

She nodded. "Yes…"

I waited for her to say more, but she wasn't forthcoming.

"Look, I'm sorry I didn't realize she would do this. I had no idea it would come to this. But don't marry him for fuck's sake, let me have a chance to get this set all right again."

She winced. "I know I shouldn't, Ha…Lara, that you're really you in there, but…"

"But nothing." I leaned in close, whispering softly but urgently. "I can talk to Molly. She's a very powerful Sidhe of the Winter Court. If anyone has the power to undo this, she will, and she owes me."

Murphy nodded. "Okay."

"So you'll wait and not marry…that?"

"Hmm? Oh. I dunno, Lara."

"What do you mean you don't know."

"I just…he makes me feel so…God, so Yummy. I can't hardly think straight. I mean…"

She was acting very strangely. I briefly opened my third eye, and gazed upon her. I could see a laserbeam of power emanating from her chest, from her heart, and going into the other room.

"Fuck, I said. He really got you, didn't he."

"Yeah, he did. Oh my God, Lara, you don't know what it was like. It's like every chocolate sundae you've ever had rolled on top of you and made you orgasm all at once!" she giggled. "He wants to change me, too, I think I might let him!"

I could feel tears bite my eyes. "Don't let this happen Murphy, I know you're in there!"

"Hey!" she said. "I know!" she gripped my arms. "Lara, would you be my maid of honor? Oh, say yes, say yes, say yes!" She hopped up and down.

I sighed. "So there's no chance you won't accept his proposal. No chance you'll wait for me to undo this?"

"Oh, Lara, why would I want that?" she looked at me, searching. "He's so…good at everything. Oh my God, Lara. You just don't know."

I felt my soul shrink inside me, screaming. This couldn't be happening. The one person I thought I could count on, could withstand this. We'd stood against everything; werewolves, fae creatures, monsters of every sort. All erased in a few moments of ecstasy.

"Hey!" she said, brushing away my tears. "Don't be sad. You're like my best best friend, Lara!"

"I know, baby." I said.

"So does that mean you'll be my maid of honor?"

I looked at her. I would have done anything for her, had done anything. I'd kill for her, protect her until the day I died. Even if that meant I couldn't be married to her.

"Of course."

"Oh goody!" She said, wrapping me up in her arms. "Let's go tell everyone, okay?"

I nodded, and hand-in-hand, we walked out into the living room.

"Gentleman, I'm proud to present my Maid of Honor, Lara Raith!" Karrin said, her voice high pitched and full of excitement.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

We drove home in silence. Thomas seethed with anger. I could tell because he kept clenching and unclenching his jaw.

Stunned, I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how to act, or what to do. I'm not normally at a loss of words, but having my entire body, soul and spirit ripped from me was a bit of a traumatic experience.

I shifted in the seat. I really needed a change of clothes. And I was…so…hungry.

"I'm starving," I said.

"Yeah." Thomas replied, guiding the now almost flying vehicle through the streets of Chicago. It was a good thing no one was around. If a truck pulled out from a side-street right now, we'd be toast.

Strangely, we didn't go home…I mean, back to the Penthouse. I was sort of looking forward to getting upstairs and getting in that bathtub I knew I had.

"Where are we going?"

He sighed. "You need to feed, Harry."

I frowned. "That name…somehow doesn't feel…right anymore."

"Yeah."

I glanced at the neighborhood we entered. It wasn't a normal place we usually went to eat. "What, you know some kind of Barbeque place down here?"

"Nope," Thomas said.

He pulled up to a park. I could see a number of homeless guys camped out in boxes, under whatever shelter they could find. Some wore newspaper clothing, others had plastic bags around their torsos and arms.

Thomas didn't say anything, just hopped out of the car, and walked dertiniatedly into the crowd. Seemingly at random, he grabbed someone then came back to the car. He opened the trunk, threw the guy in, and got back in the drivers' seat.

We drove again, as I puzzled through it. Recognition dawned on me, as we entered a deserted vacant lot.

"Get out," Thomas said.

I opened the door.

He got out and opened the trunk. The homeless guy was in there, tape over his mouth. He struggled, fear in his eyes.

"No," I said. "I am not going to do that."

Thomas sighed. "You really don't have a choice, Lara. Either feed on him, or you'll end up feeding on someone you don't intend later on when your demon manifests.

I looked down at the guy. He held his hands out, struggling to get away. Thomas held him by the collar.

"Do it," he said. "You don't have to kill him. Your body will take what it needs, then I can let him go. If you wait too long, you will kill someone, Harry. I mean, Lara."

I winced, and sighed. I looked at the guy. He had stringy greasy hair, and was missing a few teeth. Tattoos covered most of the exposed surfaces of his neck, arms and hands.

"I don't even want to touch him, much less, feed on him or whatever."

"You don't have to touch him. Just…sniff him. Your body will do the rest."

Unsure of myself, I leaned over a little. I gave a little sniff and…

Something swept over me. I felt it in my toes. It was like finding the world's best hamburger in a dingy dive on the east side. The next time I inhaled, I didn't just take a small sniff, I inhaled, and something came with it.

I filled my lungs, filled them deeply. He stank, of sweat, of booze, of other drugs. That sparky smell I always associated with meth users. But another part of me drank in, something and it filled me, refreshed me, and I wanted more, more…

"Stop." Thomas said. He released the guy's collar and thrust him away. "Now, get back in the car."

"But—"

"No, get in now!" He took my arm forefully, and led me to the passenger side of the BMW, then lifted the hatch.

"I—"

"In!" he said, putting a hand on my head.

"O-kay!" I said, getting in the vehicle. I wanted more, but at least I wasn't so hungry anymore.

He got back in the drivers' side and we burned rubber a little as we left the deserted lot.

I glanced back and the guy was sitting on the sidewalk, kind of shaking his head a little, and looking after us. I felt a little sad, I knew he wanted me, wanted to follow me, and we weren't letting him.

By the time we were back to the apartment, the spell, or whatever it was, had been broken. We got out of the car, and took the elevator up to the Penthouse. Thomas completely ignored Jerry. I gave him a tight-lipped smile as the elevator doors closed.

I could tell he was still seething. His jaw wasn't working like it was during the drive, but it seemed like every muscle was coiled like a snake, ready to pounce.

And distantly, I was still hungry.

"Can we eat something? I mean, not someone, but like, a cheeseburger or something?"

"Look, Harry." Thomas said, as we stepped out of the elevator. "You're going to have to get used to it. This is the new normal for us. We take a little when we can, and we make do, but we're basically hungry all the time. Now do you get it?"

"So what, we don't eat Cheeseburgers?"

"Look, I'll show you."

He opened the door to his apartment, and motioned for me to follow.

Inside, we went to his immaculate kitchen. He had stainless steel appliances set off by dark accents. I knew my apartment was white, everywhere, everything. Thomas was always so morose, even in his color scheme.

I sat down on one of the stools at his tall dinner table.

He took out a steak, and set it on the grill, turning the flame on hot. Then he pulled out a pan and banged it onto the stove. He broke a couple of eggs using one hand, put them in a bowl, then used a whisk to stir them briskly, adding chopped green onions and peppers. Then he poured it into a heated pan.

He got two glasses down, then filled them ice. He took some fresh oranges out, cut them in half, then fed them into a press, filling two glassses half-full with the fresh-squeezed juice. Then he poured in some Grey-Goose vodka over it, and flipped the omelet. He set the juice in front of me, and flipped the steak.

A few moments later we both had steak and a perfectly prepared omelet in front of us. It smelled heavenly.

"Eat." He said, taking out a fork. He sat down on the stool opposite me.

I started with the steak. "Mmmm, yummy."

He shrugged, eating as well.

We ate in silence for awhile.

I took a sip of the drink, and found it very good indeed.

After I was full, I looked up at him. "Thank you."

He shrugged. "But, are you not hungry anymore?"

I thought about it. My stomach was full, yes. But…there was still a need, still a craving.

"I still want to go back and find that guy and finish what I started."

"I rest my case." He got up and took our plates to the sink. Washing them off, he set them in the dishwasher, and pressed the button. The kitchen was back to its previous immaculate state.

"So, now what?" I said.

"Now, you go back to your penthouse, take a bath, and probably sleep for awhile. You've been through a lot, Harry, and it's going to take a bit of time to recover. Afterward, we probably need to think about what happens with Susan, didn't you say she was on a timeline?"

I'd completely forgotten about Susan. "Ah, jeeze. I told her I'd meet her later on today. Do you think, um, the other Harry will take that over?"

"Doubtful. We're in new territory, Harry. Lara, in her very long life, has never done anything remotely like this. I'm truly sorry, if I had even an inkling she might do this, I wouldn't have recommended it." He put his hands over his face, and I could tell it really broke him up to say that.

"Hey, hey." I said, coming around the table, and putting my arms around him. He hugged me back, burying his face in my shoulder.

I stroked his long hair. "None of that. It wasn't your fault."

He nodded, but I could tell he was unconvinced.

"You might have lost your sister, but you've gained…another sister." I chuckled. "Who, just so happened to used to have been your brother."

"At least we're keeping it in the family," he chuckled, pulling away and wiping his eyes.

"See? There's my baby brother, I love so much." I smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"Jesus, you sound just like her when you say that."

"Yeah, well.." I glanced down. "If the shoe fits."

He rolled his eyes.

"I'll get cleaned up, and maybe lay down for an hour or two," I said. "But then we really need to find Susan."

"We?"

"Yeah, I'm going to need some backup, buddy. I don't have any of my powers anymore, and Susan is definitely a Red Court Vampire now. You should have seen her."

"Full-on nightmare?"

"Yeah, and she took to it better than I expected. We need to get those sins figured out asap."

"I can do some digging. At least find her past articles and blog posts. Maybe that will give us something to go on."

"Good thinking," I said, smiling and touching his shoulder.

"We'll talk about -this- when we drive out to see Susan. She's way up on insert route so it'll take awhile to get there." I held out my hands, indicating my new body.

"Sounds like a plan."

"I'll be back in a couple hours?"

"I'll be here…Lara."

I shivered at him using my new name. Kissing him chastely on the cheek.

"Love you brother."

"Love you too."

Entering Lara's…my…apartment was an experience. In some ways, it was very strange. I, the Harry Dresden I was, had never actually set foot in Lara's apartment. She rarely made an appearance to us, either constantly being busy with running Raith Industries, or cloistered privately behind her penthouse walls, or out with whatever friends or social circles she had.

The other part of me new it like the back of my hand. I entered, and glaced around as I took off my gloves and jacket, setting my Coach purse on the white marble table in the foyer.

White carpet set off white furnishings. The only color in the room was the green stalks of a lovely boquet of white Callas Lilies on the table. They were horrifically expensive, but I had them delivered three times a week.

I went over to the flowers, and inhaled them deeply, closing my eyes at the fragrance.

Stepping out of my shoes, I made my way into the bathroom. White marble tiles set off a glorious, immense bathtub. I started the water, and added some bath salts, oil and coconut milk.

I went into my wardrobe and selected a tailored white Christian Dior pantsuit, with matching Jimmy Choo pumps, and laid them on the bed.

Disrobing, I stared at myself in the full length mirror in the back of the closet.

Lara, I…was gorgeous. Sleek soft and smooth skin, with supple curves and not an ounce of body fat. I had a well tucked fanny, with pert breasts that were neither too generous or too small, but a nice ripe handful. My neck didn't have a trace of sag, and my face had zero wrinkles, age spots, or other detracting marks other than a perfectly placed mole just above the right side of my full lip.

Dark hair tumbled across alabaster shoulder as I took out the hair tie, and shook out my tresses. My blue eyes were different from Karrin's…being a deeper azure, almost violet in their natural state.

My eyebrows needed a little work, however. Something for after my bath.

I went back into the bathroom, and entered the tub.

"Alexa, play some soft jazz."

Damn, I wish I'd taken another screwdriver, I thought.

This is what little brothers were made for, I thought. "Alexa, call Thomas."

He picked up on the second ring.

"What."

"Brother, can you pour me some of that amazing nectar you gave me this morning at breakfast, and bring it to me in my tub?"

"Is that an invitation?"

I thought about that, glancing around my tub. It could hold the Chicago Bears football team with room for a few Cubs baseball players.

"Of course," I said, with a languid smile.

"Be right there."

From Lara's memories, I knew this wasn't a super common occurance, but Thomas and Lara did have a rather open "brother and sister" relationship. It wasn't on the level of Cersei and Jaime Lannister, or anything but they were closer than most siblings.

He appeared a few moments later, wearing a black bathrobe, and carrying two wineglasses with ice and a pitcher with liquid and orange slices floating inside.

"You are the best brother, ever," I said, taking a glass.

He snorted, then set the pitcher and glasses down within arms' reach, and turned and took off his robe.

As Harry, I'd never actually seen my brother naked. Half-brother. Even as Lara, I was only his half-brother.

He had chiseled muscles, and six pack abs, looking like a well-toned Adonis, with perfectly tanned skin in contrast to my alabaster.

He got in the tub, and I made a show of smiling at his manhood. He rolled his eyes a bit self-conscious, and slipped under the bubbles, sliding next to me on the tub seat.

"I see you're enjoying your new life."

"This may be the best bath I've never had." I said, smiling and twisting my hair up on my head, and setting it in place with a white barrette.

"I'm glad you're acclimating."

I took a long drink of the nectar of the gods, and smiled. "Well, I figured, 'when in Rome.'"

Thomas sighed, and sat back, stretching his arms out. "I assume you have access to all of Lara's memories?"

"Yes," I said. "She lives quite the life."

"Yeah, about that." He, took a drink, and set it on the marble beside the tub. "You'll need to get up to speed on all the company projects. We were in the midst of quite the shit-show, as you can gather."

A few pieces clunked into place in my head as he said those words.

"Oh, yeah. Wow."

"Yeah."

"You guys were really considering a sale?"

"And you know the conflict."

"Wow. I'd never have…wow."

"Now you're seeing why she might have been so eager to escape?"

"You are against the sale. And Lara wanted to sell. I'm…surprised."

"Yeah, Lara was ready for a change. She wanted to sell off huge heaping sections of the company, cash out, and basically make some kind of escape. I'm not surprised that, given the opportunity, she saw your life as more attractive than her own. Hundreds of people were about to lose their jobs, and she was about to pull the trigger."

I followed the sequence of events. Realization flooded through me.

"Jesus," I said, in nearly a whisper.

"Yep."

"She was basically planning long-term self-immolation."

"Quite literally."

"Wow, and she wanted me…I mean, Harry, to do it!"

"Yep. She had a pretty intricate plan to draw you in and set herself up as a monster that needed killing."

"Why?" I said. "When she has all…this?"

He shrugged. "You…well, she has been alive hundreds of years, Harry. When you've been around that long, you've made all the money, seen all to see, what's left if you have no one to share it with?"

I felt a lump rise in my throat. "But she had you."

"Yes, and a few other close friends, as I'm sure you now know."

"Anita, Diane…wow, and I had no idea I know Katy Perry personally?"

He laughed. "Yeah, they spend time together, pretty frequently."

I dug through her memories and marvelled. "They're actually pretty close friends!"

"I know, right? Katy sang at my birthday party."

"And I wasn't there," I said.

He coughed. "Well, Harry was kind of considered dead that year. If you remember."

"Oh, yeah…" I remembered my life as Harry, but it was growing distant, fainter. Lara's memories were moving forward, more clearly. "This is so strange."

"It's going to be, for a bit. I'll help you get through it."

"Well, I still have hope I can reverse it. I know what you said about the Accords and such, but I have an ace or two up my sleeve, I didn't reveal."

"Want to share that?"

"When the time comes."

"You mean Molly."

I nodded. "Her among others. There's a couple of wizards on the grey council I can talk to."

"I won't say it's impossible. I'm not a wizard, Harry, but remember, Lara now has all of your memories too."

"Yeah."

"So, she might know you're coming."

I sighed, and drank a bit more. "This really was an act of desperation. I can feel how she both wanted, and didn't want, to do this. I think it might eat at her a little bit."

"But now she has someone to share it with."

"Pfft, Murphy is no one's thrall." I shrugged. "Well, I mean, she might be at the moment, but Murphy's a tough cookie. When push comes to shove, I think I can win her back."

"Lara is quite seductive. We'll have to see."

"Hmmm," I went over all the memories. "The thing to do…would be…"

Thomas grinned. "You need someone to fall in love with you."

"Exactly. If I were to suddenly start living the life Lara never did…"

"With Lara's power, influence, and money…"

"And with someone loving and caring by my side…"

"And maybe certain people could suddenly start taking an avid interest in the new Harry…"

I chuckled, thinking about that. "Yeah, we could make his life a living hell, for sure."

"You could probably have Lara on her knees begging you to swap back."

I felt that hunger again, the one in the background, the one un-sated. "Maybe…she really hated living with this hunger though. I can see her, and your, point now."

"You need to spend some time at The Cup. We can get that taken care of."

"It does align with both goals. Ivy mentioned someone from your salon knew something about what Susan should do."

"And while you're there, you can skim a bit like I do. It really does help keep the hunger at bay."

"What about Justine, by the way? I haven't seen her in a long time. Either as Lara or as Harry."

"She's sheltering in place with her mom up in Milwaukee. All's fine, and she'll be back in a few weeks when this is all over. I really don't want her exposed to the virus, she's imuno-comprimised, as you might know."

I remembered the time Thomas nearly drained her completely. It left her frail and a little broken, and she often fell sick, even in the best of times.

"Good," I said. "I was a bit worried. She is my right hand, lady."

He chuckled. "Lara's you mean. Yes."

"Well, even as Harry, I had her keeping tabs on…well, me."

"I always suspected that, but you just confirmed it."

"Regardless, I'm glad you're keeping her safe, little brother."

He clinked my glass. "All in a day's work, sis."

I giggled at that.

"Want me to wash your hair?"

I unclipped my barrett and let my hair tumble free. "Thought you'd never ask."

After Thomas washed my hair, we both put on robes, and I sat at the vanity table, and he set it in large sponge rollers. While my hair dried, he took a piece of ice, and ran it over my brows, then took some thread and threaded my brows, running the thread over my skin deftly and expertly trimming my brows down to their perfect arch. He then repeated the process for a few hairs above my lip (we'd never tell anyone), and along the sides of my face.

"If you're going to nap, you should probably sleep with the rollers in. Let me know when you wake up, and I can finish dressing it."

I yawned. The bathing, combing, and threading had all been so relaxing, I'd already been nodding off. "Okay."

He gave me a brotherly hug, and a kiss on the forehead.

I lay down on the bed, snuggling under the covers.

It felt strange, and familiar at the same time, being in Lara's bed. I missed the feeling of Murphy, almost a physical loss, and at the same time, it felt like my sanctuary, my one place of safety in the world.

I wondered what they'd be doing right now and figured I really didn't want to know.

Sleep claimed me.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

I awoke in the early afternoon. After sitting down and doing my makeup, I shot a text to Thomas, and he came over and took the rollers out, trimming the back of my hair and bangs on the balcony.

Afterward, I got dressed, moisturizing my skin and spritzing a bit of perfume. Glancing in the mirror, I used a touch of hair spray to make Thomas's efforts freeze in place.

I pulled on some calf-length silk stockings and slipped my feet into the Jimmy Chou's.

Standing in front of the mirror, I saw Lara Raith, looking like a million, or to be exact, eight-billion, seven-hundred and fifty-seven point three million bucks. My glossy black hair gently tumbled loosely around my shoulders, curling slightly. I touched it with my palms, sliding my fingers through the locks and arranging them perfectly. My white suit perfectly fitted my svelte form, highlighting what needed to be highlighted without over emphasizing or slacking in any one area. My Jimmy Choo white patent leather heels peeked spectacularly from beneath the crisp folds of my white slacks. I brushed invisible lint from my shoulders, and pursed my lips to make sure my lips didn't mar.

Thomas opened the door. "Ready, Sis?"

"Ready," I said. "How do I look?"

"Perfect." Thomas said. I grabbed my Coach purse, and we walked to the escalator.

As we drove, Thomas lit a cigarette. He inhaled, then handed it to me. I inhaled the fragrant smoke, letting it stream out my nostrils before handing it back.

"So," he said. "Plan of attack?"

"She'll be dormant during the day. May even be sleeping."

The top was down, so we had to raise our voicess to be heard. The amazing thing about the BMW i8 however, was my hair wasn't blown to terribly.

"We going to have to kill her?" He handed me the cigarette again.

I inhaled, holding the smoke in awhile. It gave me a pleasant feeling. "No, I'm pretty sure we can just take her where she needs to go. Did you come up with anything in your research?"

"A few. She was a pretty active reporter."

"Anything that might be considered a 'sin?'"

"She outed some people she considered monsters. I think some of them may have lost business, friends, and family as a result."

"How many?"

"Dozens." Thomas said, reaching for the cigarette.

I sighed, running my hand through my tresses after handing it back to him. "Going to take awhile, I suppose."

"If she has to atone for every sin she ever committed, it could take forever."

"Agreed."

The day was bright and sunny and gorgeous. I caught my visage in the review mirror, and I must say, I looked good with the gold-and diamond encrusted Cartier sunglasses. I stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray.

"I didn't know we smoked," I said. "I kinda like it."

"Yeah, we both have quit multiple times. We're getting good at it."

I giggled at that.

Being Lara wouldn't be such a bad thing, I didn't think. I was strong, rich, sexy as hell. No, I couldn't sling fireballs, and no if I tried to punch someone in the face, I'd probably break a nail, but there were far worse people I could be.

I knew the true weakness of the White Court was true love. If someone was truly in love with me, it would burn like the worst of sunburns. But Thomas and Justine worked around it, so maybe there was a way I could? That path wasn't one I wanted to travel down, but if needed…

"So how are you going to explain—" Thomas started.

"What?" I said.

"Um, your Jimmy Choos." Thomas snickered. "You're new outlook on life."

"Oh, shit. Yeah. Almost forgot that bit."

"Yeah, so?"

"Eh, I'll tell her the truth. She knows me too well."

"And Murphy?"

I sighed. "Guess I need to get fitted for a Maid of Honor Dress."

"As the maid of honor, you have certain expectations."

"Pfft, yeah."

"Planning the venue, helping with a color palette, hiring a planner…"

"Sounds like I'll need to be in contact with Karrin quite a bit, doesn't it?"

"Mhmm, gives you plenty of excuses to go over and see her."

"Right," I said, smiling.

"Perhaps reduce the hold Harry has on her."

"You should have seen her. She was gobsmacked. What the hell did he do to her?"

"Common thrall spell, Lara. You probably know at least the mechanics of it."

I thought about that. "Yes, I do, actually."

"In many ways, you're going up against your worst adversary."

"How so?"

"Well, he has all your memories, he possesses all you magic. He has Murphy locked down…"

"True. I'm going up against…myself."

"Exactly."

"But I'll be by your side through it all, Lara. Don't you worry."

"Thanks, little brother."

As we sped down the freeway, I felt strangely positive given the entire situation. Sure, I'd lost everything, but I hadn't lost everyone. Sure, the bitch had my life partner, my magic, my body, but she couldn't take away what made me, me. She couldn't take away that I was Harry Fucking Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. No matter what I might look like on the outside, or what fuckery had been planted to rearrange my insides, I was still me.

We pulled into the parking lot of the Holiday Inn Express where Susan was staying. I pulled the sunshade down, and fixed my lipstick, and fluffed out my hair.

Lara Grace Romany Raith. I would be coming for you.

And I would win.

end part one

Thank you to everyone who's read or commented. Part Two is also complete, and I'll start posting tomorrow!

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Part Two:

We arrived at the Holiday Inn express where I dropped Susan off the previous night. I didn't know her room number, so we needed to pull off a little chicanery in order to get this right. I knew Susan would probably still be sleeping, and we wanted to be there when she woke up so she wouldn't immediately attack.

Thomas opened his trunk and handed me three or four higher end clothing store bags, and set in a few of the running weights he had in the trunk. I slid my Cartier sunglasses up onto my head, and grabbed my purse along with the bags, then made a show of staggering in the front door.

"Excuse me!" I said, in Lara's highest pitch voice. "Excuse me!"

Several people were waiting in line, but I moved to the counter. "I like, totally forgot our room key. Can you look it up for me, pretty please?"

One of the managers popped out. "Miss if you can get in line, we can take care of—"

"Look, I have to use the Ladies' super bad and these bags are so heavy and we've been shopping all day." I looked back at Thomas and gave a theatric wink. "We just need our key."

"What was the name?"

"Rodriguez," Thomas said. "Under Susan."

One of the clerks did a quick lookup on his computer, then created a couple of cards. "Here you go Mr. And Mrs. Rodriguez. Hope you enjoy your stay."

"You're such a doll. Thank you so much!" I said, making a noisy exit, pounding my heels on the floor as we made out way to the elevator. "Oh, and were we in three twenty-seven? God, I totally forgot our room number."

The clerk glanced down. "One-Seventeen."

"Oh my God, thank you!" I said, as I took Thomas's arm and headed down the hallway.

"That was a bit much, even by Lara standards."

"Yeah, well, I've only been a chick a few hours. Gimme a break."

We got to room one-seventeen, and knocked on the door. I didn't think she would answer, in fact, but I wanted to check on her and see.

When no one answered the door, Thomas slipped the key through the reader, and we went in.

The place was dark, very dark. And humid. It also smelled strange, like the den of a bear, or a wolf.

"Susan?" I said. It's me…La…" I paused. "Tell her who I am."

"It's Thomas and Harry," Thomas said.

We looked around the room, but no one was in the bed. The bathroom door was shut, however, and when Thomas went to open the door, something came raging out, all claws, snapping jaws, and moving really really fast. In a moment, Thomas was down, and the thing was going for his throat.

"Susan!" I said. "Stop, it's L…Fuck, it's the Wizard!"

The thing paused briefly, turning to me. Her eyes glowed red in the dim light as I saw immense jaws poised to rip out Thomas's throat.

"I got mixed up in a body swap, but it's me."

"Harry?" the thing said, and it didn't sound feminine at all. Low, guttural and raspy.

"Yes, it's me."

"And I'm Thomas!" my brother said in a clenched voice as he struggled against the hand that was around his throat.

"Ease up, baby. It's us. We're here to help."

The thing seemed to consider it a few moments, then shook itself, and susan was standing there.

"What the hell happened to you, and why do you look like Lara Raith?"

"Long story. Can you let my brother go?"

"Oh, sorry Thomas." Susan released the hold she had on Thomas's neck.

"Sorry, why didn't you call?"

"Um, don't have my phone, and I didn't know what room you were in. Plus I figured you were sleeping."

"I was. I didn't wake up until Thomas was opening the door."

"Why were you sleeping in the bathroom?" I said.

She looked back into it, a bit guiltily. "I guess I don't sleep in beds anymore. I need a place to hang by my…well, my feet. There's a shower rod in there, and so I was sleeping."

Her flesh mask was perfect now. She appeared in every way like my former paramour. Dark hair glistening setting off dark eyes with Mediterranean skin.

"Look, can I turn on a light? We need to talk."

"Sure," she said.

I went back to the main entry and flipped on the light.

The bathroom looked like it had stepped out of a horror movie. Mud and blood mixed with unknown gobbets of body parts that had been strewn over the floor, into the tub, and in various locations all around the bathroom.

Susan closed the bathroom door behind her. "Sorry about that. I'm still getting used to my new…condition."

"I'm sure," I said. "How have you been holding up?"

She looked at me, a faint smile on her face. "You mean, have a killed anyone given the horror show of a bathroom?"

"Yeah," I said. "That."

"No, but I can say that some of the local farmers may be missing some stock."

I breathed out a breath I didn't even know I'd been holding. She gave me a sidelong glance. "Wow, I can sense your vampirism from here too. Same question?"

I felt a blush creep up my features. "No, haven't killed anyone."

She smiled. "Want to tell me how it happened?"

I thought of Murphy when we drove up, Harry's arms around her lovingly as they waved goodbye. "Let's say it was a misunderstanding."

She nodded. "And she left you with her curse; did she take your magic?"

I sighed. "My innate ability, yes. But Lara…I, am powerful in other areas."

"In many ways, Harry, people might think this is more of a step up in the world, than down. At least it's more a lateral move."

I frowned. "I beg to differ. People who make 'lateral moves' don't have to suffer this hunger."

A haunted look crossed her face. "Agreed."

"So, now that we've settled why I'm stuck in a body not my own. Have you given any thought to your predicament?"

She nodded. "I've made a list of people who I might have hurt, or caused issues."

I smiled, and handed her a folder. "We have as well."

She opened the folder and looked through. She took her time, scanning through each page. I glanced back at Thomas, and he gave me a shrug.

Tears started to leak from Susan's eyes. She snatched a few tissues, continuing to read, dabbing at her eyes.

"Well," she said in a soft voice. "I guess I better start getting used to being a monster. There's no possible way I could reach out to everyone on these two lists. It would take years to atone for all these sins."

"Perhaps you could atone for more than one at a time?" I said.

"How?"

"Atone doesn't necessarily mean to apologize. Atonement means you've made amends for past mistakes, or to be helpful.

"And how can I do that — like this?" She held out her arms.

"Well…" I scratched my head, then smoothed Lara's hair back down.

"You were a reporter, Miss Rodriguez. Perhaps you could write something that would help those if you've hurt?"

"Or…" I said. "What if you used your new Vampiric capabilities and took out your past victim's bullies?"

She giggled at that.

"Or…" Thomas said. "Maybe she could target the ones that were actually 'sins' and not worry about the small things?"

"That sounds like a good idea," Susan said. "So which one's relate to sins?"

"Hmmm," I said. "The seven deadly sins are Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy…"

"And Pride." Thomas said.

"Right, Pride. I always forget that one."

"Well, I never did anything out of gluttony, at least I don't think."

"Right."

"And I was never a slothful person."

"Nope, you were neat as a pin, current circumstance excluded."

"Have you considered what the Archive said? Someone from your salon?"

I sighed. "Yeah…about that."

Thomas grinned. "Meet my new hairdresser, Lara Raith."

I rolled my eyes. "I can't use my name. Well, her name, I can't use her name."

"No."

"So you're going undercover?"

"I figured two birds, meet one stone."

She smiled. "I could go in too."

I glanced up at Thomas. He shook his head, once, tightly.

"Considering your current…affliction, probably best to avoid temptation."

Susan nodded.

"So that leaves Lust, Greet, Wrath, Envy and Pride," Thomas said. "Anyone from that list -not- part of that?"

"Hmmm," Susan said. "Well, this one was just a story I did on the Elspeth Circle. A group of witches in upper Minnesota. Other than exposure, I don't think anyone really suffered, and if they did, they were basically stealing children away, so the exposure helped rather than hurt."

I held pointed to another page. "That one was an article for a lost cat medium."

"It had a typo," Thomas said. "The cat was never found."

"So that was just a bit of negligence, not outright Sin."

We went through the list, carefully creating a pile that could be considered "Sin-based" and another pile that we thought we could safely discard.

"That leaves 15." Susan smiled, holding up the pages.

"Much easier to handle, now, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Well, my shift starts in the morning, but I could come out tomorrow afternoon and start assisting."

"Okay, Harry," Susan said, taking my hand. "Thank you for helping me."

"Well, it's what I do." I stood up. "Helping fair maiden's in distress has always been my MO."

She smiled. "Even now, when you are the fair maiden?"

"Hey!" I put my hands on Lara's hips. "Lara is a sexy she-vamp, not a fair maiden, I'll have you know!"

Susan giggled. "Okay, Harry."

"Meh, probably should call me Lara. Something about whatever he did makes my brain itch if you don't call me that."

"Okay, Lara. Thank you for helping me."

"You're welcome." I walked toward the door. "You'll be okay tonight?"

"I will. Probably go out and get a little more beef later, but I'll be fine, I promise."

"Okay, good." I took both her hands in mine, then kissed both of her cheeks. "Stay safe, and be careful."

She giggled a little at the feminine gesture, then nodded. "You too, Lara."

I felt a little tingle when she said it. Almost like magic.

"Have a good evening, Ms. Rodriguez," Thomas said.

"Sure you don't want to stay for a bite, Thomas?" Susan said.

He rolled his eyes. "Not even funny."

Susan giggled and saw us to the door. "Drive safe."

"We will!" I said, waving over my shoulder.

We left.

Driving back we put the top up because it was starting to get chilly. Evening was settling in, and shadows grew long.

"She is taking this well," Thomas said.

"That's what bothers me," I said.

He nodded, lighting a cigarette, then handing it to me.

I cracked open the window and held the tip out so it wouldn't pollute the interior of his car.

"Hairdresser, huh?"

"Yeah."

"I can't go in as Lara. She's pretty well known."

"We'll need a disguise," Thomas said.

I sighed. "Wish I had my magic. I could just cast a glamor."

"Lara has tons of wigs, outfits, and clothes of all styles. When the hunger struck her, she'd disguise herself and go on the prowl."

"Yeah," I said. From Lara's memories I had full color renditions of that. Thomas just mentioning it with night falling was kicking in Lara's needs and desires.

"Wow," I said softly, taking a drag from the cigarette.

"What's that," Thomas said.

"You guys have a dungeon."

Thomas grinned, plucking the cigarette from my lit fingers. "Mhmm."

"Jesus fuck. Is there a fucktoy you two don't have?"

"If we don't you should tell us."

I parsed through Lara's memories of the Dungeon. They practiced a healthy form of BDSM called RACK, Risk aware consensual kink. And kinky, they were. If there was a kink that could be exploited or capitalized on, they had tried it.

"My Little Ponies?" I said after a few moments. "Really?"

"Yeah, she never got that one, either."

"You're deranged, man."

"Hey, don't knock it 'til you tried it, bub."

"I'm just glad you haven't…you know. With each other."

"We are kinky in so many ways, but she and I have only been wingman to each other. Sometimes I enable her, sometimes she enables me. I know you haven't been too fond of Lara, but we've always had a rather close relationship.

I took the cigarette and dragged on it. "I can see that now."

"So you can understand why this was such a deep violation to me. She's been a lot more than just a big sister to me; she's been like you, my best friend, confidant, wingman, enabler, you name it. We've stuck together through all of it, especially the familial manipulations. I'm surprised you haven't struck on Lara's work stuff."

I could feel that as an omnipresent dread I didn't want to dig into just yet. I kept that at bay for now, because I knew the minute I consciously thought of it, I'd have to address certain decisions Lara needed to make, and wasn't making. I had notified Lara's PAs that I was taking a moment — which was a signal to the company I would be unavailable for a few days. They would only pester me in a dire emergency, and with the quarantine, things had been relatively quiet, though I knew there was some major decisions to be made. Money matters, stock options, the market had been in a freefall, and Lara had pulled out in the nick of time. She needed to gauge just the right moment to get back into it in order to leverage the billions of dollars of the company's portfolio. In order to keep billions of dollars, one had to invest and work it. A dynamic portfolio was only as strong as the person who guided it.

"Thinking about that gonna give me an anuerism."

He chuckled. "Yeah, it's a lot to take in. Hopefully, you can figure out this body swap thing before it becomes and issue for you both."

"Oh, it's already an issue, Thomas. He's with Murphy. Right now. In my fucking bed. With Murphy, Thomas."

"I know the only reason you aren't burning him to the ground right now is the fact she wants him."

"Yeah. Fuck. Thralls are the worst to deal with, especially if it is voluntary."

"You know, you're cussing a lot more now that you're Lara."

I sighed. "I need you to keep reminding me who I actually am. It will help."

"Okay, Harry."

"Ugh, except the damned name. She really planted some fucked up thing in my head about that. Call me Lara, just remind me who I really am."

"Okay, Wizard Lara."

I giggled at that. "Goof."

He grinned. "You know, in my book. This is the best of both worlds."

I looked at him, and smoked the last of the cigarette, stubbing it out in his technoashtray. "How so?"

"Well, I mean, you've been my brother. But there's been this whole side of myself I haven't, couldn't, share with you. And there's a whole other side of me that I haven't, couldn't share with Lara. You made me want to be a better person. Lara made me a better man."

"Huh." I said, glancing out the window. "Guess I never thought of it that way."

"If it hadn't been for you, Justine probably wouldn't be alive right now. You made me want her, even though she was in love with me."

I smiled. "All in a day's work, little brother."

"You know it really is unfair that I'm your little brother both as Harry, and as Lara."

I smiled softly. "And don't you forget it, either."

He grinned, and shook his head. Driving on into the night.

"What a crazy last few days. Susan stuck in a seventeen year old's body, then becoming the first of the new Red Court vampires, Molly becoming Maalshiira, a full sidhe, me becoming Murphy and then Lara. When's it going to end?"

"Harr…I mean, Lara." Thomas paused, clenching his jaw a bit.

"What?"

He sighed. "I hate to say this, but…"

He paused again, and I could tell he was steeling his nerve.

"What, man?"

"Lara doesn't take half-measures. If she wanted this, she must have been planning it for awhile now. It's not like her to just step off, you know?"

"You're saying it's not going to be a walk in the park getting my body back?"

"Yeah, that."

I sighed. "When is anything I do ever easy?"

"I just worry, is all. I don't want anything bad to happen to either of you. I hate that you've become enemies like this."

I considered that statement. He didn't say we'd become enemies with her. I wondered when push came to shove who Thomas would side with. I needed to be able to depend on him, but if he acted in Lara's interest instead of mine, would I even know? Could he be doing it, even now?

"Where's those fucking cigarettes, man." I said.

He pulled one out of his breast pocket. He started to hand me one, but I stopped him.

I took the pack.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

"Everything is a rat's nest! A rat's nest, I tell ya, Tiffany!" The woman in the chair spoke in a heavy New Jersey accent. She was about 65 going on 150 years old and had fluffy blond mixed with gray hair that had grown out over the past few months into a lumpy, oily mess on top of her head.

"I can see that," I said from behind my designer N95 mask. It was white trimmed with black accents and looked to have been created in Apple's Tesla lab.

"I want a trim and the roots! Look at my roots! I want those taken care of, doll. You can do that, yes?"

"Yes, Mrs. Feinstein." I ran my fingers through her damaged gray and blond locks.

Harry would never have known what to do, but from accessing Lara's memories, I was able to put together a strategy for curing her hair woes. Leaning her back in the chair, I began to shampoo her hair using warm water.

"I am so grateful to you; you have no idea." She said as I worked the water and shampoo through her hair. She wasn't wearing a mask, apparently believing herself to mean for the virus to take hold.

I looked over at Thomas and could feel his grin behind his own designer mask. He worked on a lovely thirty-something blond who only needed a trim. Mrs. Feldstein was going to take me most of the day.

Three other hair designers were working this morning in 'The Coiffure Cup," Thomas's salon. It's not that he enjoyed working with hair; he used it to skim life force from each of his customers. Just a bit here or there to not cause any worry or panic.

As I reached in to shampoo the bottom of Mrs. Feldstein's hair, I did the same. I inhaled a little, taking in just a bit of her life force. I saw her eyes droop in response.

"I'm a little sleepy, dearie," she said. "Might take a lil nappy."

"You go right ahead, Mrs. Feldstein, and I take care of this for you."

In a few moments, she was asleep.

I finished her shampoo, then started the hot oil treatment. I knew her hair would not take the harsh bleach without repairing it first. She should do this in several visits, but Lara knew a concoction that would work wonders in a matter of hours, instead of days. As Mrs. Feldsteing slumbered, her head resting on her shoulder, I mixed up the different oils into a container, then set it to heat up.

As I was working, I glanced in the mirror. I'd bound Lara's hair up in a tight bun, then put on a lovely blond wig that hung in a bob just to my chin. I'd put on a bit more makeup than usual, with bright pink lipstick and eyelash extensions. I wore a pair of pink glasses without any prescription to complete the disguise, and though it wasn't too bad. No one would guess without Lara's…without my long dark signature hair who I really was.

I worked the oil into my customer's hair and sighed. This wasn't what I wanted to be doing.

It had been an interesting experience sleeping in Lara's body. It was strange, and at the same time, so familiar. I had wicked dreams, and in each one of them, I, as Lara, was having kinky sex in some fashion or another. I didn't hate it, but when I awoke, I had to use Lara's…implements to achieve release. Lara detested having to stop to using implements; she'd much rather find some human toy to bring her release.

I could feel my mind in turn, shifting more. As Harry, I had been a stalwart Guardian of the Light, able to tread on the boundary between what is Light and what is Black but always on the side of Rightousness. While Lara wasn't a monster, she had a carnal need for Lust that she adored, nurtured, and developed over the hundreds of years she'd been alive.

It drove me a little crazy to think of what she might be doing in my body to Murphy. I'd need to check on her later today to make sure she was still okay. Lara had created toys in the past using her skills as a Tantric, and plastic surgery to craft playthings that left little to the imagination. I could only guess what she'd be doing now that she had access to my Thaumaturgy, Alchemy, Evocation, and other wizardly skills.

I also needed to somehow get in touch with the White Council. The second law of magic; Thou shalt not invade the mind of another. And the third law; Thou shalt not enthrall another, had definitely been violated. If I could convince them that Lara had stolen my body, they'd remedy it quickly and efficiently. They'd also probably kill Lara, so I hesitated to get them involved considering Thomas's relationship with her.

I sat Mrs. Feinstein up in the chair and placed a hood over her head. She was still out like a light, thank the Goddess. I turned the dryer on to high and let her sit a few moments while I went out for a smoke.

One of the other stylists, Tricia, was outside smoking as well. She nodded her head to me, as I took out a long cigarette and pulled my mask down.

"God, I hate working in these masks," Tricia said.

"Yes, they really interfere." I sparked the cigarette and held them between my elegant fingers.

"So, how do you like The Cup?" I'd been introduced to the other girls as Tiffany, a contractor from Missouri who would only be in and out for a short time.

I shrugged. "Not bad. Upscale clientele. I hope for good tips."

Tricia smiled. "You're in for a treat. I don't know what Raith does to these women, but they tip like you wouldn't believe. And he always shares his tips with his stylists and doesn't take any himself. Can you believe that?"

I nodded, taking a drag. "I can, actually. I've known Thomas awhile now."

She smiled. "I can see you have. He looks at you differently than the rest of us."

"Oh?"

Tricia smoked. "He smiles at you. Usually, he's a pretty fierce taskmaster if you know what I mean. Ordering us around, directing, commanding, correcting. It's usually like Hell's Kitchen around here, minus the profanity. I don't think Raith knows the word 'fuck' if you know what I mean.

I chuckled at that. "I do."

"So where you from, Tiffany?" She said.

"Oh, I live in Lakeview."

"Ohh, that's gorgeous there. Do you like it?"

I pulled a healthy drag off the cigarette. "Love it."

"I bet!" She smoked some more. "I'm in Hyde Park. Well, not the park itself, but the neighborhood."

"Of course. Lovely there too."

"It's a place," she said. "Say, we're going out for drinks after. You want to join us?"

I was tempted. I really did what to mix in with the group, and Tricia seemed like a nice person. However, I had two things to do that night; visit Murphy, and help Susan.

"Have to raincheck that tonight. I have other plans. Perhaps another night?"

She shrugged. "Sure. It's tough to find a place open now anyway. We usually hang out at Stella's."

Stella's was a small bar down the block from The Cup.

"I'm surprised they're open."

"Mmm, not really 'open' if you catch my meaning. Jessie knows Stella, so she opens up the back door for us."

"Ohh, that's nice," I said, stubbing out the last of my cigarette. "Well, I better get Mrs. Feinsteing's coloring mixed up."

"First day back, and she wants the works," Tricia said. "Sorry, you got stuck with her."

I smiled. "She seems alright. I just hope —" I held out Lara's manicured fingers, rubbing them together.

"Just don't make her too blond. She hates that. She says she wants Butter Scotch, but she really wants Sand Pebble."

"Good to know," I said.

I walked back into the salon and started mixing colors.

At the end of my shift, I said goodbye to the ladies as they walked out the door, leaving Thomas and I standing at the doorway.

"Good group of gals," I said.

"They're awesome."

"You get anything about Susan today?"

He shook his head as he locked the doors to the salon. "Nope, you?"

"No." I followed him out to our cars. I'd driven that day because I wanted to go visit both Susan and Murphy.

"You going to be okay?"

"I think so. As long as 'Harry' plays nice and doesn't try anything."

"Don't throw down with him. You'll lose."

"I know, brother. Don't worry. I just want to see Murphy and make sure she's okay."

"Sounds good."

I got in the car and pulled off my wig. Taking out some makeup removing towelettes, I readjusted my face. My head was itchy from being under the wig all day, and I worried about dandruff from the dry skin (hair disaster!). I used Lara's long fingernails to great purpose, scratching my scalp and re-dressing my long curtain of dark brown locks.

I decided to see Murphy first since the expressway was near our apartment, and I could hop on it and up 295 toward Susan afterward. I drove through the less deserted streets of evening Chicago. It wasn't anywhere near the normal afternoon traffic jams that were a daily occurrence in the large city, so it was a pleasant experience, especially considering the purr of my I8 BMW. I smiled as it responded to my lightest of touches on the accelerator or pump of the brakes. I sure had come a long way from the blue beetle!

I parked in the driveway and stared up at the front door. We hadn't had the place long, and it was still fresh in Harry's memories. I remembered working with a realtor, Murphy having lots of 'requirements' finally finding this place, the diamond in the rough. She'd led the work crew who renovated the old place, holding their feet to the first the entire time. I'd been in awe of her leadership ability, to be able to take command and direct people like that with no backtalk at maybe 5 ft in height.

I walked up to the door. I rang the doorbell.

Harry answered.

It had been awhile since I'd seen "dark Dresden" or my "inner Harry."

It was startling to look up into my own face. It had been a little more than twenty-four hours, but the visage of "Harry" that faced me was much more 'Inner Harry' with a short dark beard, and his hair carefully combed. He wore leather pants and a black linen shirt with boots.

Damn, I looked good. Well, he looked good. It wasn't until that moment that I realized Lara was just a little bit in lust with Harry.

"Hello, Harry," I said.

He smiled. "Lara!" He held up his hand, letting me into the house. "How wonderful of you to stop by!"

"Cut the crap, 'Harry' I'm here to see Murphy."

"Aww," Harry said, plopping down in my favorite chair by the fire. "She's sleeping right now. Is there anything I can do for you? Want some coffee? Tea?" he gave a sly grin. "Me?"

"You just keep those paws where I can see them, Dresden," I said, sitting on the couch. "Maybe you can wake Karrin up? I want to make sure she's okay. Plus, we have…" I gritted my teeth. "Wedding plans."

He grinned at that. "Of course, of course!" He started down the hallway but paused before leaving. "Don't be too surprised when you see her, Lara. We've both had something of a makeover! What do you think of the new me?"

I rolled my eyes. "Just get her, Harry."

He gave me two thumbs up, then went down the hallway.

I looked around the living room. I could distinctly remember furnishing things, together, with Murphy. She'd chosen the furniture, but she let me hang up the Star Wars poster and other items on the wall. I could feel the bite of tears again, as I remembered purchasing the coffee table. We'd searched for hours looking for just the right one. She wanted a Spanish style, with thick scuffed pine and inlaid tile. It was completely against Lara's taste, which was a bit jarring to me.

"Here she is," Harry said, entering the room. With the panache of a stage, magician he opened his arms so Murphy could walk into the room.

"Hi, Lara!" Karrin said as she stopped in the doorway.

My jaw dropped open. "Goddess! What have you done to her?"

I think it was at that moment, I realized. Nothing would ever be the same.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

"Quite the strumpet, isn't she?" Harry said, chuckling.

Karrin Murphy had…definitely changed.

She'd always been beautiful, but now that beauty had been enhanced in so many ways. Her body, once thin and svelte, powerful in its own way, was far more voluptuous than svelte. Her breasts had inflated at least three cup sizes, and her backside matched.

Her face, once elfin and beautiful, was far more cherubic now, with dancing cornflower blue eyes and a button nose, with full lips grinning beneath.

Her hair…yesterday it had been about down to her chin, flowed exuberantly around her body, trailing to the floor. It was platinum blonde, and there was so much of it that I think it interfered somewhat with her ability to sit comfortably without moving it first.

"What the hell happened to her?"

Harry shrugged. "I just made her a tad more appealing."

Karrin giggled. That was a different sound as well, more high-pitched and girlish. If she hadn't told me this was Karrin Murphy, I'd never believed him. She looked younger, too. Barely 18.

"How?" I said.

Harry wiggled his fingers. "Wizard."

"Yeah, I know, but how, specifically."

He shrugged. "Well, I kinda goofed on the hair. It's growing at an accelerated rate. An alchemy spell you had in one of those dusty old books. But it won't stop growing, so I have to figure out how to at least slow it down somewhat. At least we'll make a killing on the human hair wig market."

Karrin giggled again as if this were the wittiest thing he'd ever said.

"Anyway, so that, plus I summoned a demon—"

"You did what?" I said.

He shrugged and got up to go into the kitchen. I could hear him puttering around a bit. "A demon. I had it…well, craft her, is the best word for it, I guess. As you can see, she weighs a bit more than she did, although she's still the same height. I also had her age reduced a bit, so she's in her late teens."

"It feels so good, Lara! You should let Harry do it to you too!"

I glared at her. "Murphy! I know you're inside there, somewhere, come off it!"

She giggled and looked at Harry with love and adoration. She wore a negligee that left little to the imagination, white stockings, and garter belts. If I had still been of the male persuasion, I might have called her a bombshell, all things considered.

I bit my tongue, as Murphy sat next to me.

"I'll leave you two to your…girl talk. I'll be down in the lab if you need you."

"Okay, baby!" Murphy said, waving a hand. She had inch long nails done in pink as well. Her hair had been pulled up into twin pigtails with pink ribbons.

She took my hand in hers. "Oh, Lara, you have no idea how goody I feel!"

"I'm sure."

"He's just so…good! And makes me feel…"

"Good?"

"Yes!" She giggled and clapped her hands, putting her feet underneath her on the sofa.

I glanced at the discarded gamepads on the table. Had it really only been a few days?

"Murphy, you have to dig deep and fight this thing. He does have the power to enthrall you, but there's always a chance to escape, you just have to try."

"But I don't wanna try," Karrin said. "I likes the new me." She looked at me with soulful eyes tipped with extended eyelashes. "Don't you like the new me, Lara?"

"Of course I do."

"Yay!" She clapped her hands, throwing her arms around me and hugging me to her considerable breasts. She smelled like cherries.

"So, why have you come, Lara?"

"I just wanted to make sure you're okay. And to see what…well, you said Maid of Honor. So I thought…"

"Oh! We've already set a date!"

"Yeah?"

She scrunched up her face prettily. "I don't 'member. It's soon, though."

"How soon?"

"I dunno things like that anymore. Harry takes care of it."

I saw it then. I saw a way I could get Murphy away from him. The Lara part of me could do it. It would be so easy, too, to just take in a bit of her, and then she'd be mine. Harry could do a lot of things, but he wasn't a White Vampire anymore.

I was. And I could use that power to get Murphy back.

I thought about that. But didn't that mean I'd be no better than him?

"So, what colors do you want for your wedding, Karrin?"

She looked upwards, thinking. "Pink!"

I nodded. "I kinda figured. And what other color?"

She twisted her mouth to the right a bit, thinking again. "Pink!" she giggled.

"You already have Pink, darling. What other color?"

"Pink and Pink! I want pink."

I sighed. This was going nowhere fast. I didn't think it was a permanent IQ reduction, usually these things came as a geas, which meant Murphy was under there somewhere but couldn't act any differently than the bimbo she appeared.

"How about Pink and white," I said, making some notations in a notebook I'd brought.

"Yes!" She said. "Pink and white. But then we can stop the white and be pink and pink!"

I sighed. "So, venue."

She frowned. "What's a benu?"

"Venue. Where do you want to have your wedding, darling."

"Oh, I don't know."

"We could have it at a park, by the lake, in a church—"

"Ew, no churches. Harry says soon we won't be able to go to churches anyway."

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno. Just the darian's don't like em."

"Darians?"

"Yah. Some club we're gonna join. Darian."

I frowned at that, not knowing what she was talking about.

"He's gonna make us rich too!"

"You're already rich, darling. Don't you remember the time we went into Hade's vault?"

Her face screwed up cutely. "Yeah, a little. It's hard to 'member things from when I used to, you know?"

"Yes, I do, love."

"And now I'm me, and I like my big boobies. Do you like them, Lara?"

"They're lovely, dear." I couldn't help but watch her hold one of them up and lick the nipple. She moaned softly.

"So back to venues. How about a park?"

She was moaning a bit more loudly now as she licked the aureole, the nipple standing up. Strangely, my nipples responded, and I couldn't quite keep my eyes off the erotic display.

She used her mouth to great effect, nipping her nipple, then letting it settle, and blowing across it. Then she'd massage both her breasts, her face looking upward, her painted eyelids closing in ecstasy as she moaned.

"Ohhh, let's hurry up, Lara, I'm gonna cummy."

"So, a park it is." I said, writing PARK in my notes.

"Yay!" She said in a somewhat breathless voice.

"Now, which park?"

"Oh, I don't care," she said, then yelled. "Harry!"

"What is it, my love?" Harry said from down in the basement.

"I'm gonna cummy, but I wanna fuckie. Can you come up!"

"I'll be right there. Maybe ask Lara?"

Murphy looked at me, steam in her eyes.

"No, I have to go."

"She has to goooo, Harrrryyyy." Murphy said in a plaintive voice.

Harry chuckled. "Coming up."

I stood up. "Well, we got the fact she wants pink, and to have it at a park."

He nodded. "I'm surprised you got that much out of her. I had her IQ reduced pretty severely."

"I noticed. That's just a geas, right?"

He smiled darkly. "Nope."

I thought about what he said about the demons. "Wait. What, exactly did you give the demons in exchange for making her like that?"

"What you mean?" Harry said, looking at me. Karrin slid off the bed, and knelt at his feet, her hands going to his fly, and unzipping it.

"What did you give them?"

"Mmm, darling, you should probably wait until Lara—"

"Answer me dammit!" I said.

"Ugh! Fine. I gave him one of my names."

I grabbed him by the arm. "Wait! You did what!?"

"He wanted one of my names, so I gave it to him."

Breathless, I started to gasp. "Which name?"

"What do—"

"Harry! Which name did you give him?"

"Jesus, it was just one of my names. I didn't give him—"

"Which NAME?" I screamed at him.

"Copperstone," Harry said. "And it did all of this and made me…"

I stood up. "Do you know what you have just done?" My voice was a scream.

Some distant sounds came to me then. Laughing and screaming and running. From below.

"What?"

"You absolute fucking idiot! I gave them one of my names the last time I summoned a demon too! So now they have them all."

"Oh shit," Harry said, and the memory must have just fell into place.

"Shit is right!"

I felt the wind slam the door to the basement open. It was hot, as if from an inferno.

And then the demons attacked.

The Dresden Files/Codex Alera is copyright Jim Butcher. This story is licensed under the Creative Commons as derivative, noncommercial fiction.

Pandemonium struck as not one, not two, not three, but five demons barreled through the doorway.

"Look, guys," Harry said, holding his hands up with his shield bracelet in one hand and his blasting rod in the other. "We don't have to do this. I know you know my full name, but we can make a bargain, can't we?"

Demons, on the scale of supernatural beasties, are near the top of the baddie list. If Unnamed Horrors, like He Who Walks Behind, Cthulu, and other creatures of that Lovecraftian ilk occupy the top of said list, the Dark Lord and his minions of soul-rending, spirit consuming, body destroying varmints are perhaps a level below. They were all fiercely strong, had multiple magical and physical abilities, and basically could rip a corporeal body apart like so much tissue paper.

Being the current occupant of a delightfully sensual and sexy corporeal form put me at a distinct disadvantage. White Court Vampires are at the bottom of the combat scale, even when compared to other vampires existing slightly above natural un-powered humans. I could maybe scratch their eyes out with my perfectly buffed nails, but probably not before they dismembered and disemboweled me in the process.

Come on, Lara. Now isn't the time to hide in the corner. Use that mind of yours to get us out of this.

I backed up, allowing Harry to take the lead, while my brain flipped through possible scenarios. I grabbed Murphy by the arm, and we started backing away from the gaggle of demons. Or would that be a thunder? What was a group of demons called anyway? I'd have to ask Dr. Google later if my fingers were all still attached.

"The time is long past for bargains, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden," One of the demons said. I recognized it as Chaunzaggoroth with its chitinous shoulders, crablike pincers, black eyes, and beaklike nose. It didn't have its spectacles on, but it still spoke in the Oxford accent I remembered. Or Harry remembered.

"Let's be reasonable, Chauncy," Harry said. "I'm sure there's something you might want that I can provide. No?"

"What we want we can take, Wizard." The demon moved on three pairs of legs toward us. "We don't need a bargain anymore; your soul is ours for the consumption!"

This was bad. Like, really really bad. I didn't have access to my magic. As Lara, I had enhanced physical strength, speed, and constitution, but it wasn't anything near being able to take on one demon, much less five.

Then I frowned. They thought he was Harry Dresden. But in actuality, I was or had been. It might just be the loophole we had been looking for. They didn't have anything on Harry.

"How do I know what your saying is sooth, Chaunzaggorath," I said, trying to keep the nerves out of my voice.

They turned to look at me. Faced with all their stares, I felt intimidated.

He held out a paper. It held an inscription upon it. "This is a missive from His Eminence, the Dark Lord below. It states I must come up and procure one Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. It authorizes me to use force if necessary. His soul is ours, as will yours be should you choose to interfere."

"What makes you think this is Harry?" I said.

"I asked him for a name last night, girl." He sneered. "This being—"

"If you'll notice," I said. "When you invoke his name, he does not respond. Therefore, he cannot be Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden."

Chauncy frowned at that and put on a pair of gold-rimmed spectacles. "That doesn't make any sense. The binding last night wouldn't have worked—" The creature looked over the missive he held, then pointed his arms at Harry and said: "I command thee, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden to lower your magical arms and come with us peacefully!"

I felt a strong tug, as if something had tried to get ahold of me and missed.

Harry grinned. "Nope!"

The demon shook his head. "It must work! I repeat, lower your magical arms and come peacefully Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden!"

"Second time, I deny thee, Chaunzaggorath. You have no hold over me. Begone foul fiends!"

The demons all winced at that.

Commanding a demon to begone from your threshold is powerful magic. They usually didn't have to listen to it; they could ravage entire towns and communities without being invited, unlike vampires. But it still hurt them, kinda like a punch in the jaw to a heavyweight boxer by a seven-year old little girl.

I took Harry's staff from the umbrella holder near the door and moved over to his side. I placed it into his left hand and watched as the runes began to glow.

"Third time, Come with me, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden. Your soul is forfeit!"

This time the pull was much stronger, but I was still able to resist.

We were only going to get one shot at this. Due to the way the house was constructed, all five demons were in a constrained space. If they got out from the hallway, it would be game over, and they could pick us all apart in short order. But with them in a bunch like that, and the basement door open, I could see they left the portal to the demon realm open behind them. If Harry could hit them hard enough, they might just…

Harry shook his head. "And third time denied. Forzare!"

An invisible wave of icy Mantle-enhanced force lashed out from him, sending the demons head over legs back into the basement. "I cast thee back to the pits. You are not welcome here!"

Harry invoked the power of the threshold with those words. The demons had broken through the threshold, thinking they had his—my—true name. Now that it wasn't working, he could use that against them.

The demons scrambled away, trying to gain purchase on walls, floor, and ceiling.

"Infriga!" He cast, and the demons were suddenly blasted by the winds of winter. They were all minor demons, luckily, and he was able to get them back into the basement where the circle was lit up with a neon reddish glow.

"Forzare!" he said again, and the Demons were pushed back again. "I cast thee OUT OF THIS HOUSE!" he roared, as all the demons were swept into a maelstrom. The mini-tornado swirled and circled the room gathering up papers, books, and demons into a vortex of wind, power, ice, and dark blue glowing light. The demos shrieked, screaming as they were lifted off their feet.

Harry held his hands out in front of him, and it was an awesome sight to behold. I'd never really seen myself in the full possession of power casting the monsters out. His eyes glowed with an intense dark light that I knew was the Mantle, as he moved his arms around and around in a circle, drawing the demons in and churning them into demon soup.

The vortex spun faster and faster, the demons sliding back down into the Demonrealms one by one, their arms, legs, mandibles, and other limbs frantically scrabbling to get a purchase on anything before being sucked down into the circle.

And then they were gone, leaving the only sound the panting of our breath. We looked at each other. Murphy's face was cast into idolization as she watched the man she loved send the demons back to where they came from. It made my heart ache.

Harry looked at me, beaming. "That was fun!" he said. He took two steps, then wobbled and fell unconscious to the floor.

I lifted the prone Harry from under his armpits as Karrin grabbed his legs. We carried the exhausted wizard away from the circle.

Backing up the stairs, I carried the bulk of his body. I was glad Lara had enhanced strength, as I made my way up.

"Wasn't he amazing?" Karrin said, eyes dancing with excitement. "He was so strong!"

"Yeah," I said. "So, the enthrallment still works even when he's asleep?"

She blinked at me. "The what?"

I sighed. "Nothing, maybe lift his feet a bit higher?"

"Oh!" she giggled. "I can do that."

Together we carried Harry to the couch. She knelt on the floor beside him, smoothing the hair at his brow. "He was so brave! Oh my god, he fought demons!"

"Yeah," I said. "Look at me, Murphy."

She reluctantly tore her gaze away from Harry and looked into my eyes.

I wanted to have a soul-gaze with her, but apparently, that ability had left. Well, if that didn't work, maybe something from Lara's repertoire—

"You feel yourself relaxing, so naturally, so gently," I spoke in a soft voice with an even cadence.

She frowned, shaking her youthful head, wanting to turn back and look at Harry, but I had her eyes caught with my own.

"Your breathing slows down, and you find yourself floating, so warm, so good." I sent out an essence of my will and felt her respond, her eyelids drooping.

"Yesss," she said in a soft high voice.

"Floating, lifting away, so light, as a feather."

Her head drooped a bit.

"All that matters is my voice, my will. Let yourself drift into a deep state of concentration."

I watched her shoulders relax.

"Can you hear me, Karrin?"

"Yes," came the soft reply.

"Good. Now, we only have a few moments."

"Yes," she said.

"Harry did something to you, didn't he?"

"Yes."

"Something in your mind."

"Yes." Her eyes were closed, her body very relaxed.

"Something with your body."

"Yes."

"What did he do to your mind?"

A light frowned crossed her pretty face. "I'm so pretty. I love him."

"Yes." I said, "And what else?"

"I love to please. To sex."

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, and what else."

She began breathing heavily. "I love to sex with him."

"Okay, tell me more."

"Nothing matters except him. To sex with him."

"Okay."

"I am His. He made me."

"Yes."

"I love to sex."

"You said that already, honey. Anything else?"

"Sex."

"Okay, now, I want you to imagine the old you. Karrin Murphy. Commander of Special Forces. Can you remember her?"

Her face frowned again in obvious pain. Her brow knit, and her lip trembled. "Unhappy."

"Yes, but you can remember."

Her face contorted, eyes screwed shut tight, frown creasing her mouth as she stuck out her bottom lip cutely.

"Pain."

"Yes, but you can't forget her."

She frowned deeply. "Pain!"

"Okay, nevermind that. You remember Harry when he played Arena of Combat with you the other day?"

She frowned a bit. "Yes."

"He was frustrated because he couldn't win."

"Yes."

"That Harry was me. Lara put me in her body."

Her face screwed up into a frown. "Pain."

"I am that Harry. This Harry is not me."

"Pain!" she bit her lip.

"Harry is an imposter. I am the real Harry."

"PAIN!" she screamed, panting.

"You know this to be true. When you awaken, you will remember I am the real Harry."

"NO!" she cried, tears streaming down her face.

"I am going to snap my fingers. When I do, you will awaken. And you will remember who I really am. And who Harry really is. And who Karrin Murphy really is."

She cried, not answering.

I snapped my fingers. Her eyes bolted open. She looked terrified.

She glanced down at herself, her breasts, her hair.

She looked at me, then at Harry. "Oh my God," she said. "Harry?"

"I'm here, love."

She looked at me, then down at herself. "Why the fuck am I on the carpet?"

She stood up, wincing, stretching her legs. It made her breasts wobble. I stood up with her.

"God, Harry!" she wrapped her arms around me. "He did something to my brain. I couldn't think right."

"I know, honey. But you're back now."

She pulled away. "Jesus, look at me. I'm a bimbo freak show!"

I chuckled. "No, you're quite fetching, actually."

"You would say that, you perv. Let me go find something better to wear. How long before he wakes up, do you think?"

"I don't know. He expended a lot of energy."

"Can I shoot him?"

I sighed. "Shooting him would mean I'd be stuck like this."

"Harry, those demons knew your true name! Even I didn't know that."

"I know."

"Thank God they weren't able to take him, or you. Jesus."

She went back into the bedroom and came out wearing one of my old t-shirts. It stretched tight across her bosom.

"God, this hair! And it keeps growing!"

"I know, honey, look, we probably don't have much time before he wakes up. You should come with me; I can keep you safe."

"I'll go pack a bag."

"We don't have time for that. Let's go. I can buy you all the clothes you'll need."

"But my guns!" she started. "Let me just—"

"No, honey." I grabbed her by the arm. "Come now."

She nodded and turned. Walking quickly, we made it to the door. I opened it, and we went out into the gathering gloom.

"Wow, this is some car!" She said as she pulled open the passenger seat.

"Get in!" I said, pulling up my own door and sliding into the drivers' seat. Karrin got in and tugged down the door.

Harry appeared at the doorway. His face was set in a thunderous expression.

I pushed the start button and put it in reverse.

"No!" Harry said, as I pulled down the driveway and spun the wheel.

"Come back!"

I glanced over to Murphy, who had a pained look on her face.

"It'll be okay, I promise," I said.

She nodded, tears streaming down her face. "Okay."

I watched Harry Dresden run out into the street behind us. His face fell in a defeated expression as his shoulders slumped.

I took Murphy's hand in mine and squeezed.